Force of Nature
by Rapidfyrez
Summary: After restoring Optimus' memories, Jack hoped life would become easier. But things went wrong with the ground bridge. Now he's lost, confused, with no idea of where he is or how he got there. All he knows is that he's trapped in a galaxy, far far away...
1. Prologue

Prologue

_Decepticon Space Bridge…_

The cavern was massive, towering even. To a human, the ceiling was so high that it was only shrouded in darkness. A platform rested in the center of this cavern, made of shining steel that narrowed with its approach to the far end of the cave. Spires of steel surrounded the circle, stretching high above it, though nowhere near as high as the ceiling itself.

A certain feeling surrounded this entire area. A feeling of darkness, a feeling of…unclean that made any sane person want to take a bath and scrub themselves of the dark corruption that filled the place.

At least, for Jack, that's how he felt about the hidden location of the Space Bridge while he exited the massive green swirling vortex behind him. It was hard for him to believe that merely moments ago, he'd been on an entirely different planet searching for an ancient super computer to restore the memories of Autobot leader, Optimus Prime.

But that was what he'd done. The massive Cybertronian had gifted him with the key to Vector Sigma, said supercomputer, and the teen had been taken by his partner, Autobot Arcee, to Cybertron to find the computer. What had followed were attacks by Insecticons, scraplets, and simply trying to survive on the planets harsh surface.

And now he was back in the bridge cavern again, though in a far more frantic mood. Megatron had found them, and attacked the Autobots responsible for holding the bridge in the first place. Had it not been for the radio silence, Jack and Arcee wouldn't have even known that Megatron was waiting for them.

Luckily, Arcee had been smart enough to realize what might have happened. And adding to that luck, she was right. She'd came charging in guns blazing and was currently engaging the Con Warlord in hand to hand combat to buy Jack time.

Time to restore the memories to a very confused looking Optimus Prime.

Jack raised the silvery blue key to point at the Prime's chest. An unsure look passed over Optimus' faceplate, "Are you…certain…I am worthy?" he asked.

"You have no idea," Jack replied. He'd seen the Prime sacrifice his own wellbeing for the sake of others countless times. Optimus had been willing to die to save Earth from certain destruction. If _anyone _was worthy of being a Prime, it was Optimus.

A thin beam of white light streaked from the Key and into Optimus' chassis, which opened and revealed the Matrix of Leadership, a gold and silver device resting within his chest. This process lasted several seconds before the key suddenly floated out of Jacks grip into the air towards Optimus.

It grew back to its original size and the Prime gently took hold of it, a determined look on his face. Jack heard thundering footsteps and he turned to face Megatron, who engaged his blade to strike both Optimus and the teen down…

"NOOOO!" Megatron shrieked, plunging his blade down…

A loud thunderous boom echoed through the cave. Megatron's blood red optic's widened in shock. Optimus held his blade perfectly between his two servo's. With his memories restored, Optimus Prime had returned.

"Megatron…" He growled. His battle mask sealed shut with a definitive clamp.

"BE GONE!" Optimus slammed his fist up into Megatron's jaw with a thunderous 'boom', knocking him backwards.

Optimus quickly stood to his pedes and punched the warlord across the faceplate again, knocking him farther away. His barrage was never ending, and Megatron was helpless under the assault, only able to stumble backwards from the blows of his mortal enemy, remade anew thanks to Jacks assistance.

And with each blow that Optimus delivered, the scattered Autobots, Bumblebee, Bulkhead, Ratchet, and Arcee, began to slowly clamber to their pedes. It was as though the Primes strength over Megatron was infusing them with new energy. So much so, that when Optimus sent Megatron crashing into the wall they all managed to stand, their stances strong and confident once more.

Optimus shifted his servos to blasters and blades looking back at Ratchet and the others, "Ratchet," he said calmly, "How did we arrive at this location?"

"Long story old friend," Ratchet explained.

_"Base to Arcee, we're reading_five_Autobot life signals down there. Is Prime with you?"_ the voice of Special Agent William Fowler's voice called.

Arcee smiled at her charge "And Jack," she replied.

A large silver servo suddenly shot up onto the platform and Megatron heaved himself upwards, snarling angrily at the Autobots. His optics were aflame with pure rage, and his sharpened denta ground together with a screeching rasp. The Autobots didn't care, they proceeded to fire upon the warlord, right as a smaller copy of the swirling green space bridge opened next to them on the platform.

"It's ours!" Arcee yelled.

"Autobots! Fall back!" Optimus ordered.

Jack didn't waste any time arguing and ran to the portal, when he heard something. A noise he _never _wanted to hear from a ground bridge ever again. A high whirring sound that slowly grew higher and higher in pitch. Jack skid to a stop at the base of the bridge and turned back to the Autobots.

"Jack, go!" Arcee yelled, realizing what was happening.

And then, the ground bridge and space bridge exploded and everything went black…

_Northern Canada…_

The first thing Arcee became aware of when she first woke up, was that it was very cold. Not as bad as when she and Optimus found themselves trapped in the arctic without a bridge, but cold enough that she definitely felt it in her chassis.

After taking a moment to adjust to this sudden shift, Arcee sat up from her position and blinked a few times as she took in her position. She was half buried under several feet of snow on a large mountain overlooking a landscape of green and white before her.

In other words, not the Decepticon Space Bridge, or Outpost Omega.

"Well, talk about weird…" She said, before she suddenly remembered.

"JACK!"

The boy had been right on the edge of the ground bridge when it detonated. Did that mean… The femme immediately began looking about for the teenager, slowly getting out of the snow and brushing it away as much as she could. She kept this up for several minutes until a large patch of snow was piled up around her in a large wall that cast long shadows over her blue frame.

Arcee fell to her hands and knees, resting there for a moment as fear overtook her systems. She couldn't find Jack anywhere in the general area… Did that mean he'd died in the space bridge explosion, cut down right when it seemed as though they would finally get their Leader back?

She shook her head, "No…that can't be it. Maybe he made it through in time… Or was transported somewhere else…"

That had to be it. This had happened before, with both Jack, Raf, and Miko. The three had been in close proximity to two Ground Bridges, and the result had trapped them in a parallel dimension that was labeled now as the Shadowzone. The worst case scenario, Jack had been sent there once again…

Immediately, Arcee placed her servo to her comm. "Arcee to base, Arcee to base, do you read?"

_"Yeah, we read Arcee…" _Fowler responded.

Arcee let out a sigh of relief, "Oh thank Primus."

_"Right. Now, Arcee, care to explain what in the Sam hell just happened!?", _Fowler demanded.

"There was an explosion, the space bridge was still running when you sent in the ground bridge." Arcee explained, "I think the team was separated, can you track them?"

Fowler never responded. Instead, there was the sound of movement followed by someone grabbing the mike, before Raf's younger voice crackled over the comm.

_"I've already tracked down the bots Arcee, their signals were easy to find. Bulkhead is in Eastern Georgia, Bumblebee in Detroit, Optimus in the UK, and for some reason Ratchet wound up in Germany." _

Arcee nodded the explanation off, "Okay, good. But what about Jack!?"

There was a silence over the comm. and Arcee ground her denta together, "Raf, what about Jack!? June, can you hear me? Aren't you worried!?"

_"Arcee… June's dealing with it." _Fowler responded, _"Because, well…"_

"What!?" Arcee demanded. She had a feeling she knew, deep in her spark, but she didn't want to accept it. Not yet, not when she still had a small sliver of hope…

_"We can't find Jack's signal. If he's still alive…well, the boy is on his own…"_

_Unknown Location…_

When Jack finally came to, he immediately shut his eyes tight. His entire body was sore, and the bright light pouring down on him definitely didn't help him feel any better. Honestly, it hurt to even move, that's how bad he felt at the moment. He didn't want to move, talk or do anything that required effort. He just wanted to lay there.

But after laying there on the hard floor for several moments, Jack knew he had to move and slowly started sitting up. He ignored the mild pain, the bruises and such that he knew decorated his hide and slowly opened his eyes once again.

Light poured through his pupils, blinding him for a moment. Jack squinted them tightly and blinked on several occasions before his vision finally began to clear. And the first thing he noticed when he woke up, was that the bulky space suit Fowler had given him to go to Cybertron had been pretty much destroyed.

The entire outer layer was gone, and he saw his helmet lying in ruined pieces on the floor across from him. This left him clad in the skin tight under suit, that if he remembered correctly, acted as a sort of pressure suit for zero atmosphere environments. Useless now.

"Great. Fowler's going to kill me." Jack mumbled, before struggling to his feet. He ignored the protests of his muscles as he did, finally straightening up.

He swayed back and forth unsteadily, before steadying himself on a…large, steel crate. Jack blinked a few times when he saw the wall of steel in front of him, more confuse at the moment than anything else.

"I don't remember this being part of the Space Bridge…" he scratched his head, rather confused.

And then his eyes grew to the size of dinner plates when he noticed the _rest _of his environment. It was safe to say that he was not in the Decepticon space bridges location. Not unless they did some major remodeling.

The structure he found himself in was far smaller than the cavern he'd been in, but that made it no less massive. Steel walls stretched dozens of feet high into the air, topped by industrial lights that made the entire area shine in an almost… well, it looked like he was in a place you only saw in science fiction.

A feeling further supported by the dozens of crates littering the area next to large winged vehicles. Jack would have assumed they were planes, until he looked at the far end of the hangar. Instead of seeing blue skies and a dirt or grass field, he saw endless stars, and the edge of a rusty grey planet in the corner of the hangar.

Jacks mouth went dry and he felt about ready to faint. He didn't, but he did lean against the crate and put a hand to his head, "I'm…I'm in space!"

And with that realization, it hit Jack. Those weren't planes at all, they were _starships_!

"Did I get teleported to the future or something?" he asked himself.

Suddenly, something rolled by in front of him. A small robotic figure on wheels, two in front on shifting struts and two at the back. A large cylinder rested on top of it, with a large blue optic in the center of its disc shaped head.

Jack stared at the odd shaped…thing, not sure what to make of it. The machine stopped and it's head swiveled to look at Jack, almost curiously. For several seconds it stared at Jack, who raised a hesitant hand and waved.

"Hi…"

The machine suddenly bounced up on its wheels before shooting forward into the hangar with a series of frantic beeping and whirring. Jack winced, from the way the thing had reacted, he had a feeling this would not end well for him.

"Maybe I should get to cover or hide or something." he reasoned. Ticking off the…space police or something didn't sound like a good idea to the teen.

However, before he could even really move, he saw the machine returning. And this time he brought friends. Two large figures, dressed in bright white armor, with orange highlights and carrying odd guns that Jack had never seen before, long and cylindrical with odd glowing bits on them. Their armor was segmented at the joints, and their helmets had some sort of black glass on them set in a T-shape. Like everything else in this strange place, they looked like they belonged in a sci-fi film.

Seeing these figures approaching him, Jack decided running would _not _be a good idea. He might not have known what those guns were, but it was a safe bet they would still hurt or kill him if he was shot with them. So instead he managed to stand off the crate and raised his hands in a gesture of surrender.

The two large men came to a stop a short distance away. They didn't raise their guns, but they did hold them rather uneasily. Obviously they hadn't expected a teenager in a skin tight suit to suddenly appear in their hangar.

One of the two men who appeared to be the senior, as his armor was more elaborate than the others, spoke to Jack, "Who are you?" he demanded in perfect English, much to Jacks relief. So at the very least if these guys weren't human, they knew how to speak his language.

Still, Jack wasn't sure exactly what to do, except answer the man's question of course, "J-Jack Darby…sir!" he added nervously.

The two men looked at each other, almost…confused, or like they were discussing something quietly between each other. After several rather tense moments for Jack, they turned back to him, their rifles held rather tensely.

"You'll have to come with us." the guard ordered.

Jack nodded without hesitation, "Lead the way."

_Later…_

After taking him 'prisoner' the two guards had lead Jack down a series of halls, some containing large windows that overlooked the planet they were orbiting. It appeared to be all desert, and Jack had initially thought it was maybe Mars or something. But he got an odd feeling from the planet. A feeling of…darkness, and unclean. The same feeling he'd felt whenever he was in a con installation, be it the space bridge or the Nemesis. Needless to say, when they were in a hallway without windows, Jack felt far more comfortable.

And after leading him for several minutes (Leading Jack to wonder how large this place was), the two guards lead him into a small room with two chairs and table placed in the center. A single light illuminated the room, though oddly enough there was no door.

The senior guard lead Jack over and shoved him into the seat, not hard but firmly. The bruises all over his body made him wince slightly, but he complied without protest. The senior guard looked at his lower ranking friend and nodded.

The other guard exited the room and stopped at the wall next to it, pressing something. A moment later, a blue semi-transparent wall flickered to life with a gentle hum. Jack went a bit wide eyed at that.

'Shields? Is that what that is? Where in the pit am I?' the longer he was here, the more questions built up on his mind. Who were these people, where was he, and why did they have tech that even the bots didn't even seem to have?

All these questions and more swirled through Jacks mind as he and the guard just…waited. The guard didn't sit at the chair, and he didn't really talk to Jack. He just…waited next to him with his rifle held at the ready.

Jack shifted in his seat rather nervously, some of his questions itching at the back of his mind nonstop. Eventually, he couldn't take it! He had to ask at least _one _question! So, slowly he looked up at the guard.

"So…where am I?" he asked very carefully.

The guard looked down at him, grunted, and then looked back up. Jack frowned and looked forward again, "Oh…well thanks…"

And again, they were plunged into an awkward silence for several more minutes, before the guard looked back down at him, "Defense station orbiting Korriban." he answered.

Jack blinked a few times at the answer, "Oh…well that clears everything up." he said. Which was a total lie! He had no idea what Korriban was, or why there was a station in place orbiting it! All he felt was even _more _confused than before!

This almost drove Jack to ask another question, when suddenly he heard the sound of footsteps on the steel floor of the station. He looked back at the wall and saw the other guard had returned and was deactivating the shield wall. But this time, he wasn't alone.

When the shield fell, the guard walked in and took a position by the exit. But Jack paid him no mind, instead looking at the 'friends' of his that followed him in.

One was a young woman, roughly nineteen or twenty, with brown black hair, stormy blue eyes, a relatively short height, and creamy tan skin. Her hair was cut short with bangs on either side of her face. She wore a tight fitting shirt of an olive-brown color with simple golden trimming and brown shoulder pads. An armband of metal rested on her upper left arm, and she wore brown gloves with a silver armor plating on them.

She took the other corner across from the guard and stood there while the third person approached the seat across from Jack. And he was far stranger than anyone else Jack had seen. And he hung out with giant robots on his off days!

The figure was a tall man, probably a few inches shorter than his guards, and had light brown skin . Tattoos lines his face, and he had green eyes that seemed to contain a certain level of wisdom to it that Jack had never really seen before. Oh, and he also had several horns growing from his bald head, a feature that really threw a curveball towards Jack. He was clad in a brown robe, but underneath it Jack could see olive-green steel armor worn underneath it.

The way he carried himself and was dressed seemed to scream warrior to Jack. And if that wasn't enough, he could…sense, some sort of power radiating off the man. Something not uncommon for Jack. He always got feelings like that around people, be they human or Autobot. And apparently it applied to horned guys too.

The man sat in the chair and folded his hands on the table while his eyes examined Jacks rather nervous expression, and his scorched attire. Jack avoided his eye contact, rather nervous about the whole situation and a bit unnerved by the man himself.

But after a moment, his scrutinizing gaze softened and the man spoke in a stern but kind voice, "You needn't avert your eyes. I mean you no harm." he told Jack.

The teen looked back at the man hesitantly. The man spread his palms open in a friendly gesture, "Please, what is your name?"

Jack thought the guard would have told this man, but decided against it, "J-Jack…My name is Jack Darby."

The man nodded at this, "It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance then, Jack Darby. I am Battlemaster Kao Cen Darach, of the Jedi Order. And I would like to know what has brought you to Korriban."

**A/N: I promise this will be the last new story I write. That said, you want to know why I started this story? Because it's May the Fourth! And for those that don't know… I am a HUGE Star Wars fanboy, it is probably my most favorite series EVER! Even more than Transformers *Gasp!* I know, what a shock! **

**But with that said, I know others have requested me to do a TFP/Star Wars crossover, and I finally succumbed to their requests. However, part of my reason for this, was because the only other one I could find that followed a similar event to this, well… It wasn't that good, in fact it was pretty poor in the character department. No offense to the writer personally, but I felt it was poor at not only representing Jack, turning him into a Mary Sue, but demonized the Jedi Council into a bunch of mind rapists who cared little about the respect and privacy of an individual's mind. **

**Okay, end rant. **

**Now then, a few things. My original story hit a snag, the dreaded writers block, and I have AP tests coming up, so I have NO idea on upcoming updates. But odds are, I will focus on this story because… Well I can, that's why. And for those wondering why I put this in the TF category? Because I always put my stories there. **

**Now, one last thing, this story will follow take place in the events of the MMORPG Star Wars The Old Republic. Why? Because I LOVE the lore surrounding that game, and figured I could do so much more with it then I would in say, the movies or TV show. Okay, last last thing, if there is a Star Wars fan out there that better understands the fighting forms and styles of the Jedi, contact me PLEASE. I don't know it as well and need help deciding what I will do for poor Jack. Whew, now with that said, what did you guys think? A pretty good prologue, or did it need work? Does this story interest you or not? Do you have questions, or not? Please, let me know in the reviews, PM, or anything else you can think of! Let me know! I can only get better with your feedback. Bye!**


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter 1: Far Far Away

_Autobot HQ…_

Arcee's shoulders sagged as she walked into base, hearing the ground bridge swirling shut behind her. The base was a large old missile silo, repurposed for Autobot use. Its rocky walls stretched over a hundred feet up, with industrial lights hanging from the rafters. To the left was the Autobots med bay, to the right was a large tunnel that lead to the entrance/exit of the base. A large concrete platform stood directly across from the ground bridge with a large elevator built into the wall and a bright yellow railing lining the edge. Ratchets terminal where he worked the ground bridge, and communicated with the Autobots, sat right in front of the terminal.

All the Autobots stood gathered around the terminal with the humans. Bee was covered in black soot, Bulkhead was unharmed, and Optimus wore a solemn expression on his faceplate. Ratchet stood at his terminal, his servos flying across the keyboard. He wore a neutral expression on his faceplate.

The humans all stood nearby, most of their faces covered in worry. Fowler paced back and forth with his arms crossed, Raf typed furiously, and Miko looked over his shoulder at whatever he was working on. June sat on the couch in front of the television, slumped in her seat with an unreadable expression on her.

Arcee barely paid this any mind and immediately moved to the medic, "Ratchet, please tell me you found him?"

It had been agreed after all the Autobots were bridged back to base, that they would immediately begin searching for Jack. One by one, the large Cybertronians had bridged back to base, with Arcee being the last. She had spent her time searching her general area frantically for her young partner, only to find nothing.

Nothing but empty snow.

So needless to say, she was feeling antsy. And when Ratchet shook his head, she felt her spark sink, "I'm sorry Arcee…" The medic murmured, "We haven't found anything yet."

"Have you tried looking back at the space bridge?" She asked. Last time something like this happened, the kids had wound up in the same location but in the Shadow Zone instead. The idea had come to her during the search for Jack, and Arcee had clung to it.

Ratchet nodded, "We considered it, but analysis of the cave proved…fruitless. The location has been buried, and the signal emitter imbedded in Jacks suit is gone."

"Okay, well where else have you looked?" Arcee demanded.

_"We checked out all our locations."_Bumblebee told her, _"Nothing."_

Fowler walked to the edge of the platform , "I've also called up my boys at the Pentagon, and they've started organizing a search and rescue nationwide."

"And in the meantime, what do we do?" Bulkhead asked.

"Yeah," Miko agreed, "I mean, what if Jack isn't in the states, what if he's in china, or the middle of the oce-"

Raf elbowed the girl and pointed at June. Miko immediately clamped her mouth shut, though June seemed oblivious to what the exchange student had said.

Arcee ignored what she said as well and focused on Ratchet, "Well, start bridging us Ratchet. He had to wind up somewhere!"

"Arcee, calm down." Ratchet said. The femme was getting a tad frantic at this point. The last thing they needed was for her to lose it.

"How can I calm down!?" Arcee hissed, "Jack is who knows where on Earth, without anyone to help him! Without me there to protect him!"

Bulkhead raised his servos to calm her, "Whoa whoa, cool it 'Cee." he said, "Jack managed to survive on Cybertron without you, I think he can handle himself."

"And if he can't!?" Arcee demanded, "What if he's not okay, what if he's hurt or-"

"Arcee!" Optimus Primes voice suddenly thundered through base, the first time he'd spoken since the explosion, and all bots froze mid speech.

Optimus wore a grim expression on his face as he spoke, "Your concern is warranted for Jackson." he started, "But you are not the only one who cares for him. It was my fault that these events have unfolded. And I promise you, we will do everything we can to find him. And failing that, if the worse has come to pass, we will recover his body."

"But-"

"And allowing your emotions to take advantage of you will not help the situation Arcee. If you wish to see Jack returned alive, only a clear processor will help. Anything less would be a hindrance and a danger."

Arcee didn't say anything initially, only thinking on Optimus' words. And realized that, to an extent, he was right. Freaking out over Jack would solve nothing. If she kept a calm head, they'd find him nice and fast with little trouble. But if she freaked out went into an overemotional mess, or worse, became that cold femme that she was when Cliff died then Jack would be worse off than if she'd kept her cool.

"Thanks Optimus." She nodded, "I needed that."

Optimus tilted his head in return before turning to Ratchet, "Begin a preliminary scan of the area around the Space bridge within one hundred square miles. Perhaps our young compatriot was luckier than we ourselves were."

Ratchet immediately nodded and got to work, his servos flying over the keyboard. Optimus then turned to Bulkhead and Bumblebee, "Bulkhead, I want you to scout the surrounding area around Jasper. Bulkhead, we will send you north." he then turned to Arcee, "You will scout the mountainous areas. Your smaller build will give you an advantage over the rest of us."

Being smaller than any other bot in base, Arcee was the best choice for navigating mountains. Her weight meant that she could easily scale them and reach locations that others could not.

"And you Optimus?" She asked.

"I will remain here," Optimus motioned to the terminal on the opposite side of Ratchets, "And assist Ratchet in scanning for Jack."

Suddenly, they heard the sound of someone moving and eyes turned to June, who was standing out of her chair, "He's not dead." she told them.

The bots exchanged looks, before looking back at June, "Mrs. Darby, while we wish to believe that Jackson is unharmed," Optimus started, "There is no guarantee that he survived the explosion."

"He's not dead." June repeated, an expressionless look on her face, "I don't know how I know, but he's not dead. He's lost, but Jack is still alive…"

She wiped a few tears out of her eyes, "I can feel it."

_Korriban…_

About a thousand different questions went rolling through Jacks mind, something that was starting to become the norm for the boy. Most prevalent amongst them was the very obvious question on what on Earth the Jedi Order was. It was obviously some form of organization, but that was about the most Jack could guess. But what it's purpose was, or why one of its members barely looked human was a bit beyond him.

And speaking of, what was the man sitting across from him? The name definitely didn't seem very human, Jack had never heard of a name quite like Kao Cen Darach. But with that said, Jack didn't feel like the man was…bad per say. He just wasn't sure how much he could trust the man. After all, Jack was in unfamiliar territory with unfamiliar people and had no idea how he got there. For the moment he had no idea what to do.

Now of course, while Jack was busy struggling with the next course of action to follow, Kao was watching him. He saw the hints of shock in the teen's eyes, mixed with many other emotions. Fear, worry, and chief amongst them, confusion. There had been no hint of recognition in Jacks eyes when Kao had mentioned his association with the Jedi Order. In fact, that had only seemed to confuse the teen more.

In fact, the more Kao thought about it, the more he realized there was a lot more to this boy than Sergeant Jace Malcolm or his Captain Fredrick Ocathos had believed. When the Sergeant had told him they'd discovered a stow away, Kao would have expected the teen to immediately reveal everything about himself the moment Kao revealed he was a Jedi. But further confusion was not something he'd expected.

This teen, this "Jack" was an enigma, and Kao found himself rather curious. But to find more, he needed to be careful in the questions he asked. Too forceful and the boy was likely to clam up. Too gentle and he'd get a similar result.

"You have nothing to fear, Jack." Kao started, choosing each word carefully, "I have no intention of hurting you. However, your appearance on Korriban is a curiosity that must be answered. It would be easier for both of us if you would please answer the question."

Of course Jack knew this, it was obvious to about everyone that things would go by smoothly if he just answered the question. So Jack took in a breath to calm himself and nodded.

"Well…Kao…" he started unsure of himself. He wasn't sure if he was supposed to use his full name or just the first name.

Kao made no sign that he had a problem with this, and Jack continued, "I don't really know _why _I'm here. I just kind of remember a…big explosion, and then I woke up in your hangar."

Jace snorted, "Yeah right." he muttered under his breath.

"It's the truth!" Jack protested, immediately looking at the young trooper.

"Please," Kao interrupted before Jace could respond, "There is no need for violence." Kao then looked at Frederick, "Captain, could you leave us?" he asked.

The trooper looked at the teen and then the Jedi, before giving a quick salute, "Sir." and walking towards the exit, with Jace in tow. The wall flickered off for a moment, before the two men stood guard on either side outside.

"Now then." Kao said, once the two were gone, "Perhaps you could explain how this explosion came to be?"

Jack nervously wringed his hands together. Now this was where things would get interesting, "Right, well… You probably won't believe me." Jack told Kao before he began.

"Maybe," The Zabrak admitted, "But the only way to be certain is for you to tell me."

Jack nodded hesitantly, "Right…" and quickly explained the events that had lead to his arrival on, or rather, in orbit of Korriban. It wasn't a particularly long explanation, but when he was done, the girl who had not left seemed a bit… Well she didn't look like she believed him at all.

Kao wore a neutral expression on his face, hiding his own curiosity quite well, "A fascinating tale." he admitted, "Perhaps you should explain more about these 'Cybertronians' you speak of, and the world you are from."

"O-okay…" Jack stuttered slightly.

"Please," Kao raised a hand, "Take your time. There is no need to rush. I am not judging, only listening."

Jack took a few more deep breaths and began a far longer explanation. This time he explained a little bit about his home town, Jasper Nevada, and then went into how he met the Autobots, how he learned about them and their conflict, along with the events that followed. Ranging from Megatron's attempt to invade Earth with a force of undead Cybertronians, to the street racing incident with Knockout, then to when Airachnid chased him through the forest, followed by MECH capturing his mother, him rescuing his mother, and all the events concerning the awakening of Unicron and how Optimus had given him the Key to Vector Sigma. He finally finished explaining how they hijacked a Space Bridge to Cybertron and how that lead to him being transported to Korriban.

And through it all Kao silent and stoic. Only occasionally did he seem to react to anything Jack told him. Particularly when he told him about the events concerning himself. Jack could have imagined it, but Kao seemed very interested in why Jack had been given the Key to Vector Sigma. But he dismissed that to him imagining things.

When he finally finished, Jack took a nervous breath and looked at Kao apprehensively. Waiting for how the Jedi would react to his story. And after hearing it all said aloud, Jack had to admit it sounded pretty ridiculous. After all, a war between giant robots and fighting off a robotic equivalent of Satan living in his planet? Sounded pretty insane to Jack.

After a moments silence though, Kao stood from his chair, "If you would excuse us for a moment." he said. Jack just nodded, understanding perfectly if the two needed a moment to digest what he'd told them. He knew that in the same situation that he would.

Kao gave a curt bow and both he and the young woman exited the room. The Jedi motioned for her to follow him down the hall out of ear shot of the Troopers. The two stopped in front of a window overlooking Korriban.

Once he was certain no one was listening to closely, Kao focused on his padawan, "Satele, what do you think of our guests story?"

The young woman frowned at that, thinking for a moment, "Personally master? I think it's a complete lie. Giant robots? A malevolent being that lives in the center of their planet? It all seems to unbelievable."

Kao nodded, "I came to the same conclusion." he stated, "Which is why I believe him."

"What!?" Satele demanded in a harsh whisper, "Master, why!?"

The Zabrak hid a very small smile. Satele was an incredibly gifted student, and under his guidance had completed several of the Jedi Trials. In a short time, he knew that she would become a fully fledged Jedi Knight. But that was for the future. She still had much to learn, and her reaction was proof of that.

"As strange as his story may seem," Kao explained to her, "Truth can often be stranger than fiction. And I sensed no sign of malevolent intent from him."

He then scanned the area again, making sure no one could hear this next bit, "I have also sensed the Force in him."

Satele blinked back her shock, "Master…are you sure?"

Kao nodded, "I am. It is very faint, and obviously he has no knowledge of his sensitivity, or the very existence of the Force. But I can sense it within him."

Satele took that in slowly, the implications not lost on her. Most Force sensitive's where found by Jedi at birth, in fact the Republic often encouraged the populous to test their children at birth to see if they were Force sensitive. And if Jack was Force sensitive, but had no knowledge of the Force, then maybe there was more credit to his story than she'd first realized.

"What will you do then master?" she asked.

Kao looked past her at the glowing blue wall of his cell, "I intend to learn more about our guest. More of his world and more about him in general. And when the time comes, I may bring him before the council for Jedi Training."

"But master, he is far too old to train in the ways of the Force." Satele protested. Most Jedi began training at a young age, and it took years for them to become a full knight. To bring in someone as old as Jack to be trained was not unheard of, but exceptionally rare.

"Perhaps." Kao murmured, and then looked back at his padawan, "But I feel that in the coming days, the Order will need every able bodied Force sensitive."

He elaborated before Satele could ask, "The shadows of Korriban have grown long Satele. Each passing day grows darker, and ancient evils within the Sith temples have begun to stir."

The Zarbak approached the window and looked out at the rust colored world that dominated the viewport, "I feel a darkness approaching over the horizon. And while I don't believe that this boy, that Jack, could stop this coming darkness, I do believe he could inspire others to stand against it."

For several months, Kao had received horrible nightmares while he slept. Visions of Coruscant in flaming ruin, the Jedi temple ransacked. Countless worlds engulfed in war and endless death, all at the hands of black cloaked figures, with blades of crimson red.

He feared for the safety of the Galaxy, for the Republic, and for the Order itself. If such trying times were to come, then the Republic would need strong capable people to stand against such darkness. And while Jack obviously was no fearless leader now, Kao sensed that he had the capacity. His story had shown that, especially concerning the Autobot Leader Optimus Prime gifting him with the Key to Vector Sigma.

If that were true, then Jack could become a great Jedi. With the proper training of course.

"Then…what will you do master?" Satele asked. This was quite the situation they'd found themselves in, with a new Force sensitive appearing out of nowhere.

"For now," Kao started, "I believe it would be best to allow our guest time to recuperate. After the events he has been through, a rest would be well deserved."

With that said, the two Jedi returned to the cell Jack was being held in, motioning for the two guards to follow them in. The moment the wall vanished and they entered, Jacks head shot up (He'd been resting it on the table) to see the small group standing before him.

Kao motioned for him to stand, which Jack did without protest. The Jedi stood with his arms crossed behind his back, "After some debate, we have decided to allow you to stay in one of the available quarters aboard the station. You will be given a chance to rest and recuperate."

He noticed the uneasiness of the guards, and Jacks own nervousness, "Though for the time, you will be confined to your quarters until a time when you are deemed fit to wander the station freely."

"That makes sense…" Jack agreed. They didn't know him that well, so why give him free reign of their station?

Kao motioned to the two troopers, "Take him to the civilian deck. Make sure he's properly clothed and fed."

The two Troopers just shrugged and moved Jack between them before escorting him out. Kao and Satele watched them leave, before Kao coughed into his hand , "Now if I am correct Satele, you have several hours of meditation to go through."

"But master!" she started to whine.

"No arguments Satele. You still need preparations for the Trial of Spirit. Now return to your quarters." he ordered firmly.

Her shoulders slumped and she hung her head, "Yes master." she sighed, before jogging off down the opposite end of the hall.

Kao managed a small smile as she ran, "Strong willed that one." he said to no one in particular. Kao looked out the viewport for a moment, taking in the vastness of space, the thousand of twinkling stars, and feeling the malevolence rippling off of Korriban in ways that made his skin crawl.

'The darkness approaches…' he thought to himself. Though he had no explanation for these feelings or visions, he sincerely hoped that he was wrong…

_Later…_

The walk to his new quarters had been… Well unpleasant wasn't a great word for it. Uncomfortable was a better word to describe how Jack had felt. For one, with most of his suit destroyed, he'd basically walked barefoot on the steel grate floor all the way to his quarters. Which happened to be a ten minutes walk and a minute long elevator ride before they'd arrived.

And his two guards were…well not particularly talkative. The senior guard was at least polite enough to not act like a jerk to Jack. The other one, who he believed was called Jace, was… Well he was a bit more of a jerk. Jack heard the man muttering to himself rather angrily, and had a pretty good guess about what.

Still, it hadn't taken too long for them to arrive at his quarters, and for a space station, Jack was rather impressed by his quarters. While not large, they were definitely big enough to sit one lanky teen rather comfortably. There was a single bed in the center of the room, with a small meter of space between it and the walls, while what appeared to be a sliding panel rested directly across from it. Jack also saw a _very _small nightstand on the far left side of the bed, with an odd sliver of glass resting on it.

"You going to gawk, or are you going in?" Jace demanded.

Jack started before walking in, "Right, right…Sorry." he apologized.

The guard sighed and looked forward, while his commander stationed himself on the other side of the door. Said door slid shut with a silent hiss, leaving Jack alone in the room. He looked around for a moment and decided to explore, starting with that panel.

Approaching it, Jack immediately looked for…well a door handle or something that might signify a way to open it. After several minutes of searching though, he let out a frustrated sigh, "Nothing."

It seemed that the panel was just that. A panel of steel welded to the wall. Probably from a maintenance job or something. Jack was about to turn and investigate the bed, when something caught his eye. A small panel covered in several blinking lights. Immediately Jack slapped himself on the forehead.

"Idiot." he muttered to himself, and investigated the little panel, pressing the largest button at the top of it. The larger steel panel suddenly compressed inward, before sliding to the side to reveal a small closet. Only really a dresser in a small alcove, but Jack wasn't really that picky.

Instead, he slid open one of the three steel drawers (Which popped open with the press of a button on top of the dresser) and investigated what lay within. It seemed someone had handled the clothing bit for him already, as the drawer was full.

Jack pulled out a piece of clothing and examined it. It was made of a very smooth material, smoother than anything he ever owned, and a light grey. It was nothing more than a simple tunic, and seemed like it was fairly close to his size. Checking through the other drawers, Jack found a pair of simple pants, socks, underwear and a pair of black boots.

"Where did they get my sizes?" He said to himself, "Actually…" he decided suddenly, "I don't want to know."

Instead, he stripped off the remains of his astronaut suit, and began pulling on the basic clothes. After a few moments, he was dressed in a simple outfit consisting of a grey long sleeved tunic, grey pants, and black boots. They fit surprisingly well, though Jack admitted the shirt felt a little thin.

He double checked the upper drawer for any thicker shirts, and brought out a piece of cloth that he unfolded to reveal a jacket of a darker shade of grey. It didn't take a genius to realize it went over his shirt, so Jack quickly pulled it on, straightening out his new clothes.

"Not bad." he admitted, "I kinda pull it off."

With the matter of his wardrobe settled for the moment, Jack approached his bed and sat on the edge, testing it out. It wasn't overly comfortable, but given where he was, and the situation he was in, he couldn't really complain. A bed was a bed after all.

A flash of light suddenly caught his eye, and Jack looked over at the glass that rested on his nightstand. He scooped up the rectangular piece of glass and found it wasn't a piece of glass. It was a sort of… Data pad or the like. It's top and bottom ends were wrapped in a silvery steel, and upon Jack grabbing it, dozens of strange symbols began flying across its glass edge, which was actually glowing a faint blue now.

Upon examining it closer, Jack realized the symbols were letters, but not any letters he'd ever seen before. And they looked nothing like the alphabet he knew at home. Immediately, the teen tossed the data pad forward across the bed and cursed.

"Great, trapped in another universe and I can't even read the local language." he sighed and fell back on the bed, ignoring his battered bodies complaints. He'd nearly forgotten about the bruises, but falling back like that had made them remind him that he was quite battered.

And then it hit Jack like a freight train, "Oh my god I'm trapped in another universe." perhaps his worry and fear had hidden such an obvious fact from him, but now Jack was quite aware of that detail. And his worry immediately turned back home.

How were they reacting to him not being on Earth? Where the others trapped in this universe too? How was his mom taking this? Jack groaned at that last one. Not in annoyance, but in fear and worry.

Jack and June were exceptionally close, a result of his deadbeat dad walking out on them when he was six. No reason, no explanation, just gone. From there, Jack had essentially acted as the man of the house best he could, always working hard, always doing his chores without complaints (For the most part), and eventually taking a lousy job at the K.O. Burger.

And if she thought Jack was dead, he could only imagine how she was taking it, "She'd probably have a meltdown if I ever got back…" he said, and ran a hand through his hair.

"And there's the key word…"

If.

If he got home. If he got on Kao's good side. If they decided not to just fling him out the nearest airlock. So many if's, it was almost overwhelming for the teen. And had there not been a loud knock on his door, Jack would have likely sat there all day just…freaking out.

That said, when his door suddenly boomed from someone pounding on it, Jack nearly jumped out of his bed, putting a hand to his chest as he caught his breath.

"Hey, kid!" The Captain called.

"Yeah?" Jack called back once he'd caught his breath.

"Jedi Master Kao would like to see you." the guard explained, "We're taking you down to the mess hall. You decent?"

Jack slipped off his bed and straightened his clothes, "Yeah, I'm decent." he replied. The door slid open to reveal the troopers.

"Good. Now come on, best not to keep a Jedi waiting."

**A/N: Oh how I spoil you. Two chapters back to back? What is this sorcery! Especially two chapters back to back and one on a Sunday!? Well, the power of fanboyism is a powerful thing my friends. With that said, what did you guys think? I know this was a fairly short chapter, but I hope the next chapter will be longer than this one. And with that out of the way, I want to let you know that there will be no pairings in this story, at least at the moment, as I myself have no issue with the forbidden love rule in the Jedi Order. Something I'll expand on in later chapters. But with that said, what did you guys think of my chapter? Good, bad, awful? Please, let me know what you think in the reviews, or PM me with ideas. And anyone who knows more about Star Wars than I (Probably a lot of you) contact me, I have questions to ask. Anyway, hope you liked. Bye!**


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter 2: The Order

_Jasper Local Market, Several Days After the Space Bridge Incident…_

June picked several boxes of microwave meals from the freezer aisle and set them in her cart. The market itself was a small story by most standards. It only consisted of a single freezer aisle, a dairy aisle, and various small scale foods and such. Some even locally made. But June didn't pay it any mind.

Ever since the 'Incident' as she was calling it now, it had fallen to her to keep the team organized. Raf and Miko were worried sick, and were barely eating at all. Miko in particular seemed to suffer. The past few days here hair had become ragged and unkempt. She'd practically abandoned putting it in her standard ponytail, and the streaks of pink had begun fading from her coal black hair already. Most of her day was spent surfing the net for any possible signs of Jack, even calling on her internet friends to help her search.

Raf on the other hand, was working himself rampant to find Jack. He'd hacked just about every website he could, and every military scanner he could. Fowler had nearly suffered a heart attack when he found out about that, before giving Raf proper access to avoid a national incident. He had simply grown unkempt and was always shaking from lack of eating.

Both children believed Jack would die if they didn't find him soon. Fowler and his sources had scrambled search parties, and even fabricated a story for the public explaining the teen had vanished on an interstate trip. At the moment, the entire state was looking for Jack frantically.

The Autobots themselves had driven themselves frantic, more so then their human allies. Arcee, Ratchet, and Optimus in particular were taking his disappearance hard. The femme was always out on patrol, scaling mountains, diving into the depths of the ocean, and exploring every bit of hostile terrain on Earth. Ratchet and Optimus had simply been at their terminals on a twenty four seven basis.

And the latter was suffering for it. Optimus had barely taken time to get his wounds addressed once he'd returned from Con control, and it was taking its toll on him. The Prime had lost much of his luster over the past few days and…just seemed exhausted.

Heck, the only one _not _freaking out and pushing themselves beyond their limit ironically was June. She wasn't worried in the slightest for her son Jack. Oh sure, she missed him and wanted him home as soon as possible. But unlike the others, she knew for a fact that he was alive.

No one knew, even June couldn't explain it. All she could explain was that it was a feeling she got. A feeling that her son was alive and well with no immediate danger threatening him. And so, she'd managed to remain fairly calm, acting as the only sane one on the team for the moment.

June smiled faintly as she remembered reminding Arcee to drink her Energon before heading on her next patrol. The previous had been a twelve hour patrol, and she'd come dangerously close to shutting down into stasis from lack of Energon consumption. The femme had blinked before looking rather sheepish and heading to the ration stores.

From that point on, June had taken it upon herself to organize the search effort from the bots side of things. Each bot would head out on twelve hour patrols, before returning to base for an eight hour recharge and refuel. One would always remain on patrol, while the other two would rest, and they'd switch out after their eight hours of rest.

The kids were a bit different. June knew they needed energy more than anything, and made certain the food they were given was quick to make, but relatively healthy. While hard to get a hold of, they weren't impossible, and June felt that she was responsible for keeping the kids as alert as they were.

Again, not a huge difference, but she was making a difference. Or liked to think so.

June shook herself of her thoughts and pushed the cart forward, ignoring the cheap pop song playing in the background of the store. She still had drinks to get for the kids, along with a few fruits and vegetables.

A cart suddenly bumped into Junes, bringing her back to the present, "Oh, sorry." the owner of the cart apologized.

"Oh it's nothing." June said, before recognizing the young woman pushing the cart. Sierra Thompson, her sons obvious crush.

"You're…Sierra, right?" she asked.

The red head nodded, "Yeah, and you're… Jack's mom, right?"

"June." said woman corrected, "I prefer not to be called Jack's mom. Makes me feel old."

"Right, sorry." Sierra apologized, wearing a sheepish look on her face.

It suddenly turned solemn thought after a moment, "Hey, just wanted to say…sorry about your loss."

June cocked her head to the side, "Hmm? What are you talking about?"

"Jack, and his whole disappearance."

"Oh, that." June sighed, "It's no big deal really. I have a feeling he'll turn up. Just a mothers intuition, you know?"

Sierra looked confused by this, "You're not worried?"

"Oh no, I'm worried sick." June explained quickly. Didn't need to send the wrong message.

"But I work in a hospital." she added, "And even though I'm worried about Jack, I know that losing my head right now would be rather inappropriate. Best I can do is keep calm and hope that he turns up eventually."

Comprehension dawned in the girls eyes, "Oh, okay. That makes sense."

"I like to think so." June agreed, with a small smile.

There was an awkward silence between the two, before Sierra backed her cart up and started down another aisle, "Well, nice talking with you Mrs. D. I really hope things go well for you."

"Thank you Sierra." June replied, with another forced smile.

The moment Sierra was out of earshot though, it turned into an honest grin, "Note to self, give Jack dating tips when he gets back…"

_Korriban…_

As Jack walked through the halls, escorted by Jace and Frederick, he had two things going through his mind. The first was how immensely grateful he was for the pair of boots he now possessed. They thumped soundly on the metal grating of the floor, but ultimately kept him from hurting his feet as he had earlier.

And secondly, he was wondering why Kao wanted to talk to him. He'd already told the Jedi everything he knew. Then, a worrisome thought crossed Jacks mind. What if Kao had decided he didn't believe his story? What if he just wanted to bring Jack before him before executing him?

It was a long shot to be sure, Kao seemed far too kind and gentle a soul to want to hurt Jack. But once the thought had entered his mind, Jack couldn't get rid of him. It was a creeping fear that refused to leave his mind, no matter how hard he willed it.

He did banish the thought into his lower parts of his mind though, upon entering the mess hall. It was rather impressive in Jacks opinion, for a space cafeteria that is. It was a fairly large steel room (Like the rest of the station) with large steel tubes crisscrossing the ceiling. A few wires hung from the ceiling, and a mist hissed from several pipes and tubes in the ceiling. Obviously it wasn't dangerous, or else they wouldn't put it in a cafeteria…right?

Several troopers dressed in armor similar to his escorts dotted the table, eating and talking happily to each other, occasionally letting out gruff laughs. And sticking out like a sore thumb, was Jedi Master Kao Cen Darach, sitting in the middle of the cluster of tables.

The Jedi made no real gesture for them to approach, just a slight dip of his head. But his escort took that as the go ahead, and lead Jack over to the table. As they approached, Jack saw two trays of food laid out. One in front of Kao, the other for where Jack was to apparently sit.

"Please, sit." Kao offered, further cementing Jacks thought.

He carefully took a seat and noticed that the food for both of them was rather…plain. Very much just a grey mush, with little texture. Something told Jack that this wasn't intentional, and that the stations food just wasn't that great.

Once he was seated, Kao waved the Troopers off, "Leave us." he ordered them.

The two guards exchanged looks before Frederick turned back to him, "No offense, Commander, but we can't leave you with a potentially dangerous prisoner."

Kao just smiled kindly at that, "Your concern is admirable, Captain." he started, "However, if our young guest was capable of fighting a master of the Jedi Order in unarmed combat, I believe he would have done so."

The two guards looked at Jack as if to analyze if he _could _take Kao in a fight. Jack already knew the answer, and the Troopers came to the same conclusion moments later, "Right, of course sir." they both saluted, "If you need assistance, you only need to call."

"Your concern is noted." Kao said, and waved them off gently.

Once the two guards were gone, Kao turned back to Jack with a more friendly look on his face, "Where are my manners? Please, eat. It may not be the most luxurious food, but after the events you told me, you must be quite hungry."

Jack wouldn't really argue there. It had been several hours by now since he'd eaten last, and his stomach growled in agreement with his thoughts. So, cautiously, he grabbed a metal spoon (Thankful that seemed to be a universal…er dimensional….concept) and dug out a small amount of the goop before taking a bite.

It tasted pretty bland, mostly like unflavored oatmeal, but it wasn't awful. Just nothing particularly amazing was all. Still, it satisfied his hunger, and Jack quickly wolfed down the food, while Kao ate at a more leisurely pace. He'd invited Jack here for more important reasons than food. That could have been delivered to his room with ease.

Once Jack was finished, he leaned back in his chair with a small smile, "Thanks, didn't realize how hungry I was until just now."

"One often doesn't until food is placed under their nose." Kao replied calmly, before finishing his meal. It had been a far smaller serving than Jacks, not that he'd noticed. Far too involved in filling his own stomach.

When Kao finished, he placed his utensil down and stood, motioning for Jack to do so as well, "Please, walk with me if you will?" he asked.

Jack looked reluctant at that, not really sure what his intentions were. Kao sensed his unease, and said, "It is your choice. If you wish, you can return to your quarters instead."

Thinking back to his rather dull (If awesomely sci-fi) quarters, Jack quickly realized that going back was a rather poor alternative to walking with the Jedi. Even if he had no idea what a Jedi was.

So Jack stood instead, "It's no problem. Lead the way."

Kao let loose a faint smile and nodded, leading the teen out of the mess hall and down a large hall of viewports overlooking Korriban. For several minutes, the two walked in silence. Though Jack tried to look straight ahead, he couldn't help but keep looking out the viewports at the planet below.

Though the planet made him feel unclean, he couldn't deny how amazing the experience was for him. He was in space, thousands of miles high, and in a space station more advanced than anything the humans on Earth had ever built.

Kao noticed this curiosity and decided to comment on it, "You seem fascinated by the sight of Korriban." he stated.

Jack looked from the viewport to Kao, "Not Korriban…just taking this all in. When I was young I always wanted to be an astronaut, but this," he motioned to the station, "Well, where I'm from its only in works of fiction. It's all a bit overwhelming."

Kao smiled in amusement, looking over the station, "You are correct. It is a marvel of science and technology. One that is often overlooked in the modern galaxy. However, the purpose behind this station," his voice took a darker tone, "is far from a peaceful one."

"What do you mean?" Jack cocked his head to the side, confused. He had suspected there was more to the station then he thought, but he wasn't sure.

The Jedi stopped and stood in front of one of the viewports, "Korriban contains a harsh history, Jack Darby. Over one thousand years ago, it was once home to the enemy of both Jedi and the Republic. The Sith Empire."

The moment Jack heard 'Sith', he felt a shiver run up his spine. Something about that name felt as dark and malevolent as Korriban looked. He immediately associated with the likes of Decepticons such as Megatron or Airachnid. Dark, sadistic, and twisted beyond comprehension.

But he had to know, "What was the Sith Empire?" he asked.

Kao looked at the teen and then motioned for Jack to walk with him once again. As they did, Kao placed his hands together, his fingers splayed apart into an almost triangular shape.

"To understand the Sith Jack, you must first understand the Jedi and what our purpose is in the galaxy." he started.

Jack blinked a few times, "I figured it was some kind of rank. Isn't it?"

"To an extent, yes." Kao confirmed, before continuing, "However, the Jedi are more than military commanders. We are the ancient guardians of peace and justice throughout the Republic, a title we have carried for several hundred generations."

Jack went wide eyed, "That's thousands of years! How have you guys stayed together for so long!?" he asked eagerly.

Kao smiled at Jacks eagerness to learn more, "It has not been easy, but for thousands of years the Jedi have stood with the Republic through every crisis that has swept through the galaxy. Many organizations would have fallen under such a task, but the Jedi have survived, through one thing and one thing only. Our knowledge and mastery of the Force."

Confusion inscribed itself on Jacks face, "The…Force?" again, it sounded like something out of a science fiction film.

Luckily, Kao had expected this reaction, "Yes, the Force. The Force what gives a Jedi his power. It's an energy field created by all living things. It surrounds us and penetrates us; it binds the galaxy together."

"Sounds a bit…hard to believe." Jack admitted. Sure, he'd heard of theories of all life being linked somehow, but to hear it from someone else and to find out there was an entire order dedicated around it seemed a bit much.

"As difficult as it may seem," Kao had expected this reaction, "The Force is very much real. And for 25,000 years, the Jedi Order has used the Force to protect the innocent and guard the Galaxy from those who would seek to destroy it."

And then, Kao stopped and raised one of his hands. Jack heard a shifting of metal and looked to see a pile of spare parts lying against the wall slowly rise into the air of their own accord. Kao rotated his arm and Jack watched, dumbstruck as the pieces assembled themselves into a simple series of connecting pipes. Then they came apart and rested back on the floor.

"That…was you!?" Jack was amazed at what he'd seen.

Kao folded his hands back together, "Yes and no. Jedi do not bend the force to their will. It is our belief to let the Force flow _through _us, like water runs through a pipe. And while we can direct the flow of the force, we never directly control it."

Once more his expression darkened, "And that is where we most differ from the Sith. You see Jack, the Sith do control the Force. They bend it and mold it to their will, using their hate and rage to increase their power. Put very simply, they use the Dark Side of the Force."

"The…Dark Side?"

Kao nodded, "Yes, and it was this following that lead the Sith from Korriban to attacking the Republic one thousand years ago in the Great Hyperspace War. Millions, Jedi, Sith, Republican, and Imperial alike all died in the conflict. And the Sith would have won as well, had it not been for one key event. You see, the Dark Side may bring power to those willing to use it, but in the end, it will always turn on itself. And so it was that the leader of the Sith Empire, Naga Sadow was betrayed by his own apprentice. It was this betrayal that allowed the Republic a chance to fight back, and to push the Sith back. Eventually we wiped them out, to ensure such evil could not return."

Jack took that all in rather slowly, digesting every fact that he could about the Force and how it was related to the Sith. Eventually, several questions formed in his head.

"So, you wiped out the Sith? That hardly seems…"

"Ethical?" Kao asked.

Jack nodded and Kao began to walk forward again with him in tow, "You must understand Jack, that the Sith, while weakened at the time, would have returned to wreak havoc again. And while the genocide of their race was a dark moment in the Galaxies history, it has lead to one thousand years of peace."

The logic was sound. Make sure your enemy could never harm you again by wiping them out. And while Jack couldn't agree with it, he realized there was no point getting upset with Kao over it. It was over one thousand years ago, there was nothing he could do about it now.

So instead he asked another question, "So why is this station here if they were wiped out?"

Kao took in a breath before explaining, "While the Sith Empire may be no more, their influence has not left Korriban. There are…creatures, shadows on the planet. Darkness that corrupts that which it touches. No Jedi is allowed to set foot on Korriban except for security reasons, for fear that the darkness that roams the planet could corrupt them. This station is here to ensure such a thing never occurs..."

He paused.

"And to make sure nothing escapes…"

Jack gulped at that and looked at Korriban with renewed fear, "And has anything escaped Korriban?"

Kao looked at his young guest, "In the past, in small amounts, yes. However, under my watch I have ensured to the best of my abilities not to let such a thing happen."

Jack didn't look away from Korriban, still worried by what he heard. Kao put a hand on his shoulder, nearly making him jump, "Do not fear though, Jack." Kao added, "Whatever twisted influence Korriban holds, it would not reach this station. Now perhaps it would be best if we changed subjects." he suggested.

Jack nodded hurriedly, "Yeah, really good idea." he agreed.

They resumed walking once again and once they passed out of the hall into a deeper section of the station, they resumed their talk. This time, Jack explained more about Earth and what it was like there, while Kao simply listened to him speak rather politely. He never said anything while Jack talked, only interrupting on occasion to ask a question or two.

And while Kao did not say anything concerning Jacks story, he did silently form an idea of what his world was like. Though it was primitive and at times rather barbaric it seemed, it sounded like it was a world full of great good and evil. Much like the rest of the galaxy, there was a constant balance between the Light and Dark Side of the Force, even if the inhabitants knew nothing of it.

While Jack talked, Kao also noticed something else. An aura of Force emanating off Jack. It was faint, barely noticeable, but he recognized the aura. A form of the famous battle meditation used by his Padawan's ancestor Bastila Shan. With it, a soldier would fight harder, stronger and to the end so long as the meditation was maintained.

It could make or break a battle if used correctly. And whether he knew it or not, Jack seemed to possess the capability to use such a technique. But it would take time and training, years of it perhaps.

Kao was not sure how Jack would react to discovering that he was Force sensitive, but he did reaffirm his earlier decision. When Satele completed her Trial of Spirit, Kao would take Jack to Coruscant before the Council and request to train him personally. Such potential needed strong guidance, and Kao feared no other Jedi would be up to the task of training such an older recruit.

But that was for a later date, at the moment he was more focused on Jack, who suddenly let out a big and long yawn, "Sorry," he apologized, "I guess it's just been a long day."

"I'd agree." Kao said, "Perhaps it would be best if you returned to your quarters to rest."

Jack nodded as he let out another yawn, "Yeah, good idea… um, where are they exactly? This place is so big, it's kinda easy to get lost."

Kao smiled in amusement and motioned for Jack to follow him, "There are several signs you could use to guide you as well." he pointed to a sign above a doorway, written in the same runes that Jack hadn't been able to decipher earlier.

Jack looked away, hiding his shame the best he could, "Right…about that…"

Kao stopped and looked back at Jack, "Is something wrong?"

The teen rubbed the back of his head, rather embarrassed by this, "I can't read this language. You use a different language than I do."

Now that was something Kao had not been expecting. But like many things he'd learned about Jack, he took it in stride, "I see. Then perhaps I would be able to teach it to you."

Jacks head shot back up, shocked, "You'd be willing to do that for me? I mean, not that I don't appreciate it, but you just met me and you don't really owe me anything…"

"No, I don't." Kao admitted, "However, if you cannot read, you will not be able to survive in the Galaxy. I will happily teach you to the best I can."

The look of gratitude on Jacks face was incredibly obvious, "Thank you Kao… That's very kind of you."

"Think nothing of it." Kao replied, "We'll begin your lessons tomorrow. I will arrive to teach you, if you are willing."

"Sure, and again, thanks Kao." Jack repeated.

The Zabrak nodded and continued onwards, leading Jack through the halls to his room. The two said their goodbyes, and Jack walked in. He barely even stopped to take off his new boots and coat before flopping onto the bed. Given all the excitement he'd gone through, he expected to be take a few hours to fall asleep. Instead, he was out like a light within minutes…

**A/N: Okay, so a bit short this time around, but I really just wanted to focus on Kao and Jack. Not sure if next chapter will have the bots in it or not yet, we'll see what happens. But in the meantime, what did you guys think of my chapter huh? Did I do well as usual, or did I fail miserably? Was my interpretation of the Force good or bad? Please review and let me know, or leave story ideas too! Be it a review, PM, or however else you contact me, I want to know what you think of this story. And again, anyone with an extreme knowledge of Star Wars knowledge, please contact me. Hope you enjoyed, and please leave a review or PM me guys. Bye!**


	4. Chapter 3

Chapter 3: Learning

_Korriban…_

Left, right, left, right. Up, down, side, parry, thrust.

Kao matched each of Satele's blows as the two sparred their two blades, of green and blue respectively, crackling against each other with each blow. The two Jedi broke apart and stood a fair distance apart. This was a sparring match, not a duel to the death, so going all out was not…entirely needed.

As they took their momentary cease fire, Kao took in Satele's form. An avid user of Form IV, _Ataru_, Satele emulated her descendants in many ways. From her double bladed lightsaber, to her use of the force in combat, her very choice of fighting style reminded Kao of her mother. He had only become a Knight when fellow Jedi Taslele Shan was banished from the Order.

She had been exiled for her belief in the strength of attachment in the Force. Though the Order had seen little reason to fear this, the Republic was a different story. Fearing her inevitable fall to the dark side, as her ancestors had, they'd pressured the Order into banishing her.

The young Satele had only just been brought into the Order when such an event occurred, yet she showed no anger at what happened, nor signs of the Dark Side grabbing hold of her. Kao was proud of her for overcoming such a controversy, and seeing that she was beginning to mellow.

Satele suddenly let loose a battle cry and charged forward, spinning her blade to her side before leaping overhead. Kao followed her movement and his emerald blade met her sapphire blade mid air. Sparks flew as the young woman landed and the two exchanged blows. Satele's initial onslaught of thrusts, cuts, slashes pushed Kao back as he blocked, dodged, and parried each blow the Padawan sent his way.

However, her influx of attacks only persisted for a short time before Kao double-stepped back, making her swing go wide. Satele stumbled after her blade, and was only able to use the other half to block Kao's downward stroke at her.

Blades hissed and popped as they met, and the two broke apart again. They stared at each other for a moment, blades held at the ready. Then, Kao lowered his stance and his emerald blade slid into the silver hilt of his saber.

"I believe that is enough for today." he told her. Their sparring had lasted for two and a half hours, with Kao only taking the offensive when she made a mistake.

Satele let out a pent up breath and deactivated her own saber before holstering it. She brushed her bangs out of her eyes and gave a small smile, "You cheated master." she accused.

Kao raised a brow while hiding his arms within his sleeves, "Cheated? I did no such thing Padawan."

"Yes you did." she replied, hands on her hips, "I felt it, when you stepped back. You used the Force to make me stumble forward."

The Jedi Knight merely shrugged as the two left the training room. It was smaller than the mess hall and lined with mats for all manner of combat. Be it hand to hand or blade to blade, the room had been designed to allow both Jedi and Troopers hone their skills while watching over Korriban. Kao in particular had used the room in great amounts, even before Satele was sent to him to learn.

He believed that there was no such thing as too much practice. Rest would be needed of course, but if a Jedi was not as mindful of their blade as they were the Force, they would be just as weak to attack. It was best to be rounded in both he believed, than focus on one over the other.

That said though, he did not cheat when fighting. He would see an advantage and seize it, but he always fought fairly, "I believe that tripping over yourself Satele does not count as an abuse of the Force on my part."

The tone in his voice was quite serious with no sign of humor, which made Satele frown, "But if you didn't… I could have sworn that I felt something."

Kao's brow came together in confusion, "As far as I know, there are no other force users on this station. Gravity often pulls harder than we expect Padawan. Maybe you simply put more energy into your swing than you realized."

Satele didn't believe that, but it was the only logical explanation, so she just nodded, "Maybe…" before grimacing and putting a hand to her head.

"Satele, what's wrong?" Kao asked. She seemed to be in some sort of pain from what he could tell…

She blinked and shook herself before looking at Kao, "I sensed…pain, a great pain aboard the station. It's gone now, but…" she blinked back tears.

Once more, her potential had reared itself. Satele had a very strong connection to the Force, Kao knew this for a fact. So her sensing something while he did not was no surprise to the Jedi. But if she had felt great pain, it needed to be investigated.

"I will investigate this Satele. Return to your quarters now and rest." he ordered.

Satele nodded gratefully and jogged over to a nearby bench and picked up some basic supplies, water and a towel mostly (sparring worked up quite a sweat.) before jogging off down the halls towards her quarters.

But as she did, Satele couldn't help but wonder. Where had that come from? The pain that she'd felt was not a physical pain, but an emotional one. A pain that struck her very core and made her want to cry out with the poor soul. But she had no idea where it eminated from or what to do about it.

She shook herself as she jogged past a group of troopers, who saluted to her. This was something for her master to concern herself with. At the moment she needed to rest and catch up on some shut eye.

Or so she thought. When the door to her quarters opened, she saw a data pad laying on her bed. Raising a brow, the Padawan lifted the pad up and blew a bit of hair out of her eyes as she read.

_'Don't forget to keep up with your studies- Koa.' _it read.

Satele let out a tired moan, "Master…"

_Jack's Quarters…_

Jack's sleep was tired and restless. The bed was comfortable, and he was plenty tired. Falling asleep had been a breeze for the young man. That was not his issue, not his issue at all concerning his sleep.

The problem was that upon falling asleep, Jack was assaulted with an awful nightmare. He couldn't quite make it out, but what he did see disturbed him to no end.

Jasper, in flaming ruins.

People running from the town, screaming in terror. Only for large black and grey shapes to come shooting out of the sky and hit them with streaks of red. No one survived where these splashes of red hit, and only smoldering craters remained.

The sky was filled with dark black smoke, the sun barely more than a dim orb that no Jack could barely make out in the sky. Several darker shapes floated over head, but the cloud cover hid them from view.

But most importantly, Jack saw two figures dueling in the main street of town. One a figure clad in black wielding a saber of blood red, which slashed through the air in glittering arcs of death. The other was a figure clad in brown, his saber a pure gold. And he was on the defensive, the black clad figure easily beating down his defenses.

The two warriors exchanged blows at a lightning fast rate. Jack could barely see their arms move as they fought, they moved so fast. For several minutes Jack watched them ifight, the black figure easily holding the upper hand. Then, the crimson blade slashed through the hilt of his combatants blade.

The golden saber sizzled out of existence, and the duelist stumbled back. Now defenseless against the onslaught of the black figure he had engaged. The figure had time to look up, right as the ruby blade was thrust towards his chest…

And then Jack woke up with a scream.

He sat there, panting hard while sweat poured down his forehead and back. Hands shaking, Jack rubbed his face after several minutes of just…sitting in bed.

"Oh…oh god…" he murmured, "What was that?" he'd _never _had a nightmare like that before. Most of his nightmares were pretty standard affair. Endless falling, being chased by something, etc.

But this, it felt… awful. As if what he saw might come to pass some day.

Jack dropped his hands and shook his head, "No, that couldn't happen. The bots would never let that happen."

The thought of the bots made Jack look back up at his quarters. A frown crossed his lips and Jack closed his hands tightly, "Why did I come here?" he wondered aloud.

"Who sent me, why did the bridge malfunction?" he received no answer of course, prompting a sigh from the teen.

"Talking to yourself Jack? Real smooth." he muttered, and moved to the edge of his bed.

He slipped his feet off the side and grabbed the boots laying on the floor. With ease, he tugged them on and sat at the edge of his bed. For several minutes he sat there, simply calming himself down. The sweat on his back dried in the cool air, and his pulse slowly died down.

Once he was calm, Jack grabbed his shirt/jacket combo and pulled them on. He'd taken it off in the middle of the night to sleep more comfortably. Once dressed, Jack looked back over at his nightstand, seeing the datapad resting there still.

Shrugging, he grabbed hold of the small glass metal device and plucked it off the table. It activated in his hands again, and Jack began looking it over. The symbols were meaningless to him, and after a good five or six minutes of failure to translate, Jack tossed the pad away.

"Still can't read it, not sure what I was expecting." he grumbled, "Can't teach myself a written language without some sort of reference…"

And honestly, Jack was getting rather frustrated by that. He wasn't an avid reader, but not being able to read at all made him feel helpless. How anyone could go through life without being able to read at all he'd never understand. It made him feel ignorant, something Jack hated to feel like.

A sudden loud knock interrupted Jacks self loathing, and he jerked up, "You awake kid?" the voice of Sergeant Jace asked.

Jack sighed and ran a hand through his hair, "Yeah, I'm awake. What is it?"

"Jedi Master Kao is here asking for you. Something about a lesson?"

Immediately the gears clicked in Jacks head, and he shot to the door. It slid open to reveal that Frederick and Jace were stationed on either side again (They must have stationed themselves there while he was asleep.) and Kao stood across from the door, arms crossed behind him.

"Oh, hi Kao." he greeted, "Stopping by?"

"I was retrieving you for your lesson." Kao reminded him with an amused expression on his face, "Although judging by your current state, I believe giving you time to rest might be in your best interest."

"No no," Jack protested, stepping out of his room, "It's fine, just woke up actually."

"Made a racket too." Jace mumbled under his breath, only for Frederick to knock him upside the head.

Kao raised a brow at the exchange but didn't comment on it. He didn't want to pry into Jacks personal affairs if the boy didn't want to share. Instead he looked down the hall, "So you are ready then?"

Jack nodded, "Yeah, lead the way." he gestured.

Kao started down the left hand hall with Jack tailing him. Jace and Frederick exchanged looks once the pair vanished down the hall, "Wonder why the Jedi's so interested in that kid?" Jace mused.

Frederick shrugged, "Not our department sergeant. We're just supposed to stand guard, remember?"

Jace's shoulders drooped, "Yeah, I know. Thanks for reminding me sir."

The captain straightened up, "Anytime."

Back with Jack and Kao, the Jedi and human were walking the halls, though to were Jack didn't know. The place was a maze to him. Amazing too. So after a few minutes of silence, enough time to let the teen get comfortable around the Jedi again, Jack decided it was time to start asking questions as per usual.

"So, Kao…" he started, "Where are we heading exactly?"

"To the station archives," Kao replied without turning back, "Though not as vast as the Archives on Coruscant, they will be sufficient for our purposes."

"Archives," Jack repeated, "That's like a library, right?"

Kao glanced back at the teen and gave a curt nod while they walked, "Indeed. However, an Archive is far more extensive. There are few works of fiction in the Archive. Only historical fact and the occasional legend concerning Korriban."

"Advanced stuff." Jack decided.

"Indeed." Kao agreed. The teen decided to shut his mouth after that, though he wasn't sure if he'd actually annoyed the Jedi or not. But after seeing him go all telekinetic the previous day, Jack was a bit more cautious around him. Even if he did have a few more questions.

Kao though sensed Jacks curiosity and stopped. Jack followed the action, looking rather confused, "Something wrong?"

"No," Kao replied, "However, I wanted to ease your worry. You have no reason to fear me Jack Darby. I am not an enemy and have no interest in hurting you. If you have questions, I will answer to the best of my ability."

Jack looked down at his feet with an embarrassed look, "Sorry Kao. Just a bit nervous is all. I'm still getting used to all this, and that whole 'Force' thing you explained to me."

Kao managed a smile at that, "Your caution is understandable. But you are among friends. Try to relax." he suggested.

Jack glanced back up and nodded. He took in a few breaths to steady his nerves. Immediately he felt the pit of anxiety in his stomach slowly start to fade away. His hands loosened and Jack stood a little taller. Kao also hid a bit of his shock as he felt that familiar aura radiate off Jack again. It wasn't as powerful as the aura from the previous day, but it was still detectable.

"Better?" The Jedi asked, though he already knew the answer.

Jack gave an affirmative nod, "Much, thanks."

"You're welcome." Kao responded. He then gestured down the hall, "Shall we continue?"

Jack just nodded again and the two continued down their walk through the halls. This time they passed through a rather large hallway. It wasn't wide, but it was tall. Easily several stories high, no ceiling, and with several walkways crisscrossing the ceiling. The viewports on this section of the station only showed off the vast never ending darkness of space. A view Jack preferred over the malevolent presence of Korriban.

Several minutes later, the two entered the Archives. Jack looked around, once again impressed. While not the largest structure he'd been in recently, the Archive was rather impressive. Rows of neon blue shelves formed rows along the walls of the room. A second floor was supported by the 'shelves' where even more were resting against the walls overhead. In the center of the room several silver steel tables rested in the center of the room.

Not at all surprising, the Archive was fairly abandoned. Jack had a feeling only scholars and maybe his Jedi friends would be interested in such a place. The Troopers didn't appear dumb by any stretch of the word. But the idea of any of them being interested in reading about Korriban while off duty did not seem like something they'd be interested in.

However, today it was a place Jack would be quite interested in. He had a feeling that he'd be spending a lot of time there today and in the future. Kao lead him over to a small circular table in the center of the room.

"Please wait one moment." Kao said, and vanished into the Archive.

Jack waited for several minutes at the steel table, drumming his fingers against the table. For a few minutes he contemplated the possibility of looking through the library for a sign of the bots. Perhaps the Jedi had come across the Cybertronians in their travels.

Immediately he dismissed the idea though. The fact that this seemed to be a galaxy wide Republic, according to what Kao told him anyway, made him dismiss the idea. They would definitely have known about the Cybertronians if they'd encountered them. Add in the fact that there were humans here, and Jack decided that he was probably in an alternate universe.

"Meaning I need to wait for the bots to find me." as astronomically slim as the chances were, Jack had faith in his friends. They'd found him, Raf, and Miko in the Shadowzone, they would find him. He just needed to be patient.

His thoughts were interrupted suddenly by the return of Kao, with several data pads in his hands. The Jedi sat across from Jack and spread the pads so they were evenly distributed. He then pushed one towards Jack, along with a stylus. Jack picked it up, but looked confused. What was he supposed to do with it, take notes?

"This is so you can show me the language your world uses for their writing." Kao explained. "If you write and explain it to me, we can begin to put together a basic translation. I don't believe it will be perfect, but it will be a start."

Understanding dawned on Jacks face, and he nodded before writing down all twenty-six letters of the alphabet. After a few seconds of scribbling them down as neatly and legibly as he could (Which he found easy on the datapad since it straightened or curved anything he wrote so it appeared neater than its original form) Jack showed it to Kao.

"Excellent," The Jedi admitted, "Now, let us begin…"

And for several hours they worked on translating the English language into Galactic Standard. Jack spent a good half hour explaining what sound each letter made to Kao. The Jedi picked up on it incredibly quick, and soon had them memorized. From there, he worked on transcribing the runes used in Galactic Standard on the pad.

After several moments of writing, he handed it to Jack where next to each letter there was a symbol from Galactic Standard next to it, "This is only a rough translation." Kao told him.

Jack looked up and cocked his head to the side, "There are rules to the writing that I imagine are different than yours. However, for simple names this should work."

A small smirk appeared on Jack's face, "Let's try it out then." he suggested.

Kao nodded in agreement and produced a new pad from his cloak. After several moments of typing, he passed it to Jack. Several line's of runes were inscribed from top to bottom. Each one grew increasingly complex until the last was comprised of nearly two dozen runes. Jack looked over the pad and grabbed his own pad and stylus.

"Take your time." Kao warned him before he began, "Rushing will accomplish nothing."

"Right." Jack slowed himself and looked at the runes again. He shifted the original translation into the upper right hand corner of the pad, and copied down the runes as practice. Once each one was done, Jack worked on translating the word rune by rune.

The first two or three were relatively easy to translate. No more than a minute or two at most to complete. But as he worked, it took longer as the complexity increased. It wasn't that translating them was hard, quite the contrary. It's just that Jack had to constantly check the translation to ensure his own translation was correct.

However, after roughly fifteen minutes of work, he found himself finished. He set the pad down and shook his hand to get the feeling back into it. Then he pushed it to Kao with his other hand. The Jedi picked it up and examined the pad.

"How'd I do?" Jack asked nervously.

Kao looked up from the pad, "Your translation is a bit rough at parts, but it is still accurate."

Jack couldn't help but let out a small cheer, "Yes!" before blinking and folding his hands while looking rather sheepish.

"So-sorry about that." he apologized.

Kao just wore an amused expression, "Think nothing of it. Now," he handed the pad back to Jack.

"I've transcribed several new words to translate. Rewrite them in their English format and then translate them back to Galactic Standard." Kao ordered.

Jack nodded slowly at that, a bit upset when the realization hit him, _'I'm in an alternate universe, or galaxy…and I'm doing English homework. It's official, I have a weird life.'_

Thoughts of English homework, in space, Jack managed to get back to work transcribing the lettering from Galactic Standard to English to Galactic Standard yet again. He handed it back to Kao again, and after several minutes, he handed it back with new runes.

"Repeat the process. Only now, I want you to write a full sentence along with it, how you would in English." the Jedi leaned back in his chair and began reading over several records while doing so.

Jack bit back a sigh and did as he was asked, translating the words, before writing out a sentence in English, followed by a translation of the sentence into Galactic Standard. After a half-hour of work, Jack finally handed the pad back to Kao.

The Jedi looked it over and nodded approvingly, "Excellent so far. However…"

"More, I know." Jack sighed.

"Patience." Kao warned him, "This will not be a fast or easy practice. It will take time and effort. Any action worth doing is."

"I know, I know." Jack sighed, before putting on a small smile, "So, let's get to it, shall we?"

Kao returned his smile and passed the pad to him. Jack took it and started to work on it, when he heard an odd beeping sound. It took him a few minutes to figure out where it was coming from, Kao's gloves.

"You're beeping." he told the Jedi as he brought his arm up.

Kao pressed something and a voice crackled over the comm. _"Master Kao sir," _it was Frederick, apparently done guarding his room.

"Captain Frederick, what seems to be the problem?" Kao stood from his chair and began walking away from Jack.

_"Sensors detected a small ship descending on Korriban sir."_ Frederick explained.

Immediately Kao's face twisted into a scowl, "Why was it not intercepted Captain?"

A single ship should have easily been detected by their sensors. Not when it was descending to Korriban. Kao heard Frederick shrug over the comm.

_"Not sure Commander."_ Frederick admitted, _"Techs say it's fast. Either way, we tracked it down to a landing at an old abandoned Sith Temple. Figured we could use your help."_

The answer was fairly obvious to Kao, "Prep the gunship for launch captain. I will be there shortly."

_"Sir!" _the Captain said, and his voice cut out.

Kao sighed and turned back to Jack, "I will return. Stay here until I have." he ordered.

Jack nodded, not wanting to get involved in…whatever Kao was involved in, "I'll stay and study. No problem."

"Excellent." Kao said and left, leaving Jack alone in the Archive. Walking down the hall though, Kao brought his arm up and contacted Satele.

_"I heard about the incident master. I'm on my way to the hangar right now." _she said before he got a word out.

"No." Kao said curtly, "I will handle this Satele. I want you to watch over our guest until I return."

"What!? But master!" she protested.

"Satele, I can handle this." Kao informed her, passing through a door into the hangar.

"But I can help!" Satele insisted.

Kao inwardly sighed. There was that temper and strong headed will again, "The best way you can help is to watch over Jack, make sure he doesn't get into any trouble."

Satele was silent for a moment, "…You think he would?"

"Better safe than sorry." Kao replied, right as he reached the large orange and white gunship. It's hangar door lay open, and Kao saw several troopers assembled and armed. Jace had switched out his rifle for a rather large looking weapon that took two hands to wield while Frederick and the others held standard weapons.

"Sir!" They saluted.

"At ease." Kao ordered, stepping into the ship. The Troops followed after him and situated themselves in the crew area while Kao walked up next to the pilot.

"We're already to go sir." the Pilot informed him.

"Good, take off immediately." Kao said.

The Pilot nodded, and a moment later the entire ship rumbled. It took only a moment for them to take off and leave the hangar. It quickly faded into nothing but a speck before the atmosphere of Korriban began to rock the ship ominously.

_Archive…_

Jack had spent a good twenty minutes practicing his translations. And he was really starting to hate them. However, he'd give the language credit for one thing. It appeared to be very similar to English in structure. Something that was a godsend for Jack. He remembered how Spanish class had nearly killed him with how odd the language was sometimes set up.

But he had no such problem with Galactic Standard. It was just a matter of translating the runes into their English equivalent. Jack was actually surprised by how similar the two languages were, but he didn't question it. He just accepted it.

However, his work was interrupted when he became aware of a new presence. Looking up, Jack blinked a few times as he realized that the young woman who had been with Kao, her name escaped him at the moment, was entering the Archive.

And then sat across from him. He blinked away his confusion and managed to gather his faculties, "C-can I he-help you?" he asked.

Satele crossed her arms and leaned back in her chair, "Master Kao Cen Darach ordered me to watch over you while he went down planet." she explained, though she hardly sounded happy about it.

"Oh…okay." Jack said and went back to his studies for the moment. After a few minutes of awkward silence, Satele's demeanor seemed to cool somewhat. She sat up in her chair and looked at the pads he was working on.

"Exactly what are you working on?" she asked, not able to make out the language he was writing in.

Jack looked up from his work, "Oh, um Kao was helping me learn to read Galactic Standard."

Satele cocked her head to the side, "You don't know how to read?"

"I don't know how to read Galactic Standard." Jack corrected, "Where I'm from we don't use it. We have a different written language. I think. The grammar setups seem pretty similar though…" he mused.

The Padawan raised a brow and looked over the pads again, "Mind if I take a look?" she asked.

"Um…sure." Jack said, and handed the pad with the translation on it to Satele. He had managed to figure out how to make a copy on a different pad, so he was fine.

She looked it over and quirked her lips, "Interesting. Our languages are so similar, but our written word is completely different."

Jack shrugged, "Well, you guys also have starships and a galaxy wide government. Something like that seems pretty minor to me." he admitted.

"Perhaps," Satele murmured. She looked up from her pad at Jack, "Mind if I borrow this to study?"

"Go ahead." Jack waved a dismissive hand, "I have my own copy…and I think I'm starting to get the hang of it…. I think."

"You think?" Satele cocked a brow.

"Well, languages were never my strong suit." Jack explained, "I prefer to work with my hands honestly. Bit of a tinkerer, I think I got it from my dad."

"Your father," Satele repeated. The concept of parental heritage that wasn't genetic was a rather foreign concept to her. She barely remembered her mother and knew nothing of her father. So parental connections were not her strong suit.

"I could be wrong." Jack sighed, "The deadbeat walked out on us when I was six, so who knows…"

Satele inwardly winced, "I apologize, I didn't know."

"It's fine." Jack shrugged, "You didn't know, nothing you could have done about it."

Another beeping interrupted the two, making Jack raise a brow, "Everyone's beeping today." he commented.

Satele ignored him and raised her wrist up. Both her and Kao had communicators built into their bracers instead of carrying one they could risk losing, "Yes?"

_"Satele, I want you to meet with us." _Kao ordered, _"We captured the ship. Simply a smuggler. Bring Jack, we'll drop him by his quarters on our way to the holding cells." _

"Of course master." Satele said, and stood up.

She motioned for Jack to follow, which he did without complaint. Both young humans left the Archive, Jack bringing the data pad with him, and made their ways down the hall. As they walked, Jack tried to make a little small talk. He was finding Satele was the rare case of a girl he could talk to without stuttering like an idiot. Probably due to the fact that she was more an adult than a girl his age.

"So, I meant to ask earlier," he started, "Why do you call Kao master?"

"I'm his Padawan." Satele answered without meeting a beat.

That only confused Jack more though, "His…what?"

Satele resisted the urge to sigh, "Padawan, or apprentice. I'm not a fully fledged Jedi Knight yet. I haven't passed all of my trials yet."

"Trials?" Jack asked.

"You are just full of questions, aren't you?" she replied.

"Different world, I don't know a lot of what you do." Jack replied.

Satele glanced over her shoulder at him, "Tell you what, why don't you wait until after we drop this smuggler off. Then I'll answer all your questions."

She turned back forward and added under her breath, "Or hopefully master Kao will instead."

Speaking of, the two groups quickly met up with each other shortly after that. Jack quickly saw who this smuggler was and almost mistook him for a cowboy. He had the large hat, the grizzled beard, a long duster coat, and strapped to the back of one of the troopers were two large pistols (At least, Jack thought they were pistols) that obviously belonged to the smuggler.

Kao greeted Satele and Jack with a nod while they walked before asking Jack, "How did your studies go?"

"Good." Jack told him, holding up a data pad, "Figured I'd hold onto this for when you dropped me off at my quarters."

"A good idea." Kao said, "I won't be able to help you for the rest of the day." he motioned with his head to the smuggler.

The smuggler, realizing he was being referred to, immediately set about defending himself, "I swear, I had no idea what was in those crates. I'm innocent!" he protested to Kao.

The Jedi almost seemed to roll his eyes, seemed that he dealt with this sort before, and then reminded the man why he'd been arrested in the first place, "You were smuggling Sith artifacts, captain."

"Fine, keep the artifacts," the smuggler sighed, "Just give me back my ship."

Jack shook his head and sighed, something the smuggler noticed, "Something funny, short stuff?"

Jack stiffened, "I'm not short. You just so happen to be tall." he shot back.

The smuggler snorted, "Someone's a bit defensive." he muttered.

Jack was about to start arguing, when an alien woman (A species Jack had not yet seen.) with long fleshy tails sprouting from the back of her skull walked by. The smuggler made no attempt to hide his ogling of the woman.

Jace sneered behind his helmet and shoved the man forward, "Eyes front." he ordered.

"Just inspecting the troops Sergeant." the smuggler said innocently.

Jack rolled his eyes and sighed again. Some things, it seemed, were universal. Or dimensional even.

But Jacks thoughts were interrupted when he nearly ran into Satele. The young woman had stopped and looked like she was suffering a major headache. Something her master immediately picked up on.

"Satele, what's wrong?" he asked her, placing a comforting arm on her.

She shook off whatever was bothering her and looked to her master with worry, "I sense… a great darkness."

Kao looked at the worry in her eyes and knew that this was not something to brush off. This could very well be the same darkness he himself had been fearing as of late. In fact, he himself was beginning to sense it. Jack shook his head as he felt…something dark overtaking his thoughts.

He and both the Jedi looked to the viewport, with Kao directly approaching it with his apprentice in tow. The Jedi watched the endless view of space, his eyes narrowed and scanning the viewport. At first it seemed as though Satele might have been simply seeing something far in the future…

When a large grey ship suddenly just _appeared_ in space. It was huge, thousands of feet wide, with two large prongs jutting forward to form the bow. Another joined it and a third one, then a fourth one. Soon dozens of the starships spilled into orbit around the station. Thousands more little black dots spilled from the bellies of the grey beasts and screamed towards the station, filling the void with fiery red blaster fire.

Kao's narrowed eye expression turned into a scowl. It seemed his worse fears had been confirmed.

"The Sith Empire, has returned."

**A/N: MWAHAHAHA! Cliffhanger! So to those who know what's coming…shh! No spoilers. And to the rest, I never intended for Jack to stay on Korriban long, trust me. With that said, this was easily my longest chapter yet and I hope you liked it. A little character development, a little lightsaber action…and a foreboding vision…wonder what it means… Also, after some debate, I've decided to start up a poll on my page deciding whether or not to pair Jack in the story. Check it out if you want me to include a pairing, or leave him single. With that said, review with what you thought of the story, and PM me with further ideas and questions. Bye!**


	5. Chapter 4

Chapter 4: Return

_Korriban…_

Thousands of star fighters spilled out from the bellies of their grey carriers. The small ships screamed towards the Korriban Space Station, unleashing an onslaught of fiery red death upon the station. The blaster fire was but a precursor though to the real threat that was making its way towards the station.

Amongst the fighters of unanimous size, there was one vessel that stood out amongst them. It was long and squat, covered in deep black panels. It's edges were covered in grey steel, with two prongs jutting forward to form a bow. It's engines glowed a deep red and it screamed silently through the void of space.

Unlike the other star fighters which had a set goal to cripple and overwhelm the unprepared space station, this star ship had a different purpose. It was no run of the mill ship meant to act as cannon fodder like so many others.

No, for it had one singular task. To seek the revenge on those that had wronged the Empire so very long ago. To ensure their enemies did not escape and did not warn the Republic of what was to come.

It's single task, it's one primary mission?

The complete and utter annihilation of the Jedi aboard the station. With their deaths, the rest of the force aboard the station would be brushed aside like so much trash. Only the Jedi were a threat to the Emperors plans. Only they could slow the capture of Korriban.

Only two passengers occupied this vessel though, as it maneuvered its way through the void. One piloted the ship, while the other meditated in his quarters. He sat on his knees, a position most would find incredibly uncomfortable. But after years of using the position, he no longer suffered from the position, and felt no burning protest of his muscles.

His pitch black armor barely reflected the light of the room, and his cloak rested nearby. The pale faced figure had his eyes shut deep in concentration. Before him, a series of objects floated in the air, rotating and shifting back and forth while being unaffected by the movements of the starship.

Slowly and surely, these pieces began pulling themselves together. Pieces clicked into place before twisting together. Others screwed together while small curved plates clicked over the individual parts. The entire process took but a few moments before the device was assembled.

It was a long silver cylinder, covered in sections of pitch black steel. One end was smooth and spherical, while the other was flat with two large blades sticking out three inches on either side. In the upper quarter of the cylinder, a lone red button stood out against more black steel. Upon this devices creation, the sitting figure's eyes shot open.

They were a bright sickly yellow laved in deep red. When compared to his face, they were painfully obvious and further betrayed his nature. The man held out a black gauntlet clad hand, and the cylinder floated into his grip. His large hand grasped it tightly, his glove creaking under his grip.

Slowly the figure stood, the tension in his muscles slowly easing, and shifted the object so the two blades pointed away from him. He compressed the switch and the object let out a sharp hiss. A long red blade shot out from the cylinder and the hilt hummed all the while.

The man brought the blade to his face, as if examining its perfect glowing edge for fault. But after a moment of silence, a malicious grin spread over his face. After a thousand years…

Revenge would be theirs…

_Korriban Defense Station…_

The moment the words left Kao's mouth, the barrage of blaster fire hit the station. The entire structure shuddered and groaned in protest under the sudden onslaught of fire. Pipes broke loose, letting steam scream free, the viewports cracked, and the entire hallway flashed with the red of a warning light.

All this barely registered with Jack as he tried to comprehend what Kao just said. The Sith Empire, the ones he said were beaten over a millennia ago… Had come back!? That didn't seem possible, according to Kao they'd been wiped out!

Another shudder ran through the base, making everyone stumble about trying to maintain their footing. Kao managed to straighten himself out and looked at the Trooper and his Padawan, seeing the worry and sensing the fear in Jace and Frederick.

"We must warn the Republic." He declared then and there.

Frederick looked out the window at the fighters speeding by, "Our shuttles can't outrun those fighters." he immediately said. One look showed they were fast and designed to kill as fast as possible.

And that was a dilemma. The station staff had already activated the station defense systems, but they wouldn't hold under such a fleet for long. They had a few minutes at best before the cruisers in orbit decided to close the range and finish them off. Which meant they needed something fast and something durable.

A sudden cough gathered the attention of all present. Eyes turned to the smuggler, who stepped forward with a cocky grin on his face, "Well, guess who happens to have the fastest ship in this sector of the galaxy?" he asked.

Kao and Satele exchanged glances. The Jedi pointed from Frederick to the smuggler, "Free the prisoner."

"Sir-"

"This is no time for debate." Kao interrupted, "We have minutes before the Sith overwhelm us. You know it and he knows it Captain. Now, release him."

Frederick looked at the smuggler, who raised his cuffed hands and looked at them pointedly. Both Frederick and Jack resisted the urge to knock the man's face in. He was far too cocky to be sure, and it was really starting to grind on Jacks nerves at this point.

Still, Frederick had his orders. So he slid a key card through the cuffs, which fell to the ground with a solid 'thunk'! The smuggler rubbed his wrists, "Thank you captain. Now if you don't mind." he held out his hands, expectantly.

Frederick seemed to almost glare at him, but had no time to argue. So he pulled the blasters off from his belt and shoved them into his hands, "Now move smuggler." he ordered.

The man holstered his blasters, still grinning, "Nice guy. By the way, names Nico Okarr, not Smuggler."

"Noted." The trooper said. The station shuddered again and Jack decided to speak up.

"Okay, can we stop arguing and go before the entire station is torn apart?" he demanded. He didn't even care when the others gave him a look. Getting off the station was fairly important, as Kao had stated.

"Right," Nico said, "Lead the way."

_Station Hangar…_

"Oh that was _awful_!" Jack hissed, running down the hall with the others. Red blaster fire streaked by the group as they ran towards the hangar. During their trek to the hangar, they'd come across a group of men dressed in black and red armor with octagon shaped symbols embroidered on their armor. Obviously Imperials, as their attire practically _screamed _villain at him.

Being in a rush, the group had elected to run like the dickens down the hall instead. Staying to fight would only waste valuable time that could not be afforded. But as they ran and the blaster fire picked up, Jack was very aware that they wouldn't get far running.

Frederick and Jace realized it too and skidded to a stop before twisting on their heels and facing the enemy. Jace un-holstered his massive chain gun-esque blaster and opened fire with a stream of green blue fire on the Imperials. Frederick followed his lead with his rifle, adding to the Sergeants suppressive fire.

It was enough to buy them enough time to turn the corner towards the hangar. Kao and Satele immediately activated their lightsabers upon seeing a group of Imperials waiting for them, and leaped into battle. Jack and Nico followed closely after them, before skidding to a stop.

Jack might consider Kao a friend, but he wasn't stupid enough to try and get involved in the flashy display of combat he saw before him. Heck, up until that moment, Jack had never even seen a lightsaber. Kao had mentioned them briefly, but had spent far more time discussing the Force with him.

Something Jack felt played a key role in keeping Satele and Kao from lopping their own limbs off. Hearing blaster fire suddenly appearing behind them, Jack turned around to see Frederick and Jace slowly walking backwards out of the hall. Still firing at the enemies chasing them.

Time slowed down for Jack rather sporadically. He seemed to be moving at normal speed, but everything else was slow. And so, he was able to see the large silver multi legged machine lumber into the opposite end of the hall and leveling a large blaster at the two Troopers.

Jack had time to yell a single, "Look out!" before the droid fired.

An explosion engulfed the two, and the shockwave knocked Jack to the side of the hall with a painful crack. Pain went searing down his right shoulder, and he fell face first to the floor. Jack had never broken a bone before in his life, but judging by the mind numbing pain he felt in his shoulder… He had to have gotten pretty close. At the very least he dislocated his shoulder, at worse his shoulder blade was broken. Neither sounded appealing to him.

Stowing the pain for a brief moment, Jack managed to look up with bleary eyes to see the two troopers laying a few feet away from him. Frederick lay on the ground, scorched. Jack knew immediately that the man was dead.

Jace on the other hand, was getting back to his feet while removing his cracked helmet. He checked his superiors pulse to be sure, right as Nico Okarr walked by, a determined expression on his face. Jack followed the mans eyes and saw a squad of Imperial Troopers sprinting down the hall towards them.

Jack wanted to yell at the man for being an idiot, but couldn't find his voice. All he could do was watch what happened next in amazement. The first droid from earlier fired an explosive shot, but missed. The explosion flared next to Nico, but the smuggler ignored it and reached for his blasters.

He pulled the first out and Jack watched as he fired a direct shot at the nearest troopers chest. The Imperial fell like a sack of bricks as his comrades charged forward and opened fire. Nico twisted to the side and pulled his second pistol, looking like an old fashioned gunslinger, and opening fire on the Imperials.

They fell under his torrent of blaster fire. And then Jace joined in the fray, wielding that mini-blaster with a crazed expression on his face. Jace let out a yell and fired a stream of blaster shots at the Imperials.

More men were cut down by their combined firepower. The droid was torn to pieces by Jace's cannon, leaving nothing but scrap metal. Jack had to admit, it was an impressive display. But it wasn't enough.

Sensing danger, Jack managed to turn his head to the hall they'd exited and saw two Imperials sprint out of the hall. They leveled their rifles at the Jace and Nico. Once more, time slowed for Jack. He looked between the two men, to the Imperials, and then to Fredericks corpse. His rifle had skid away from his body, a short distance away from Jack.

Reaching his uninjured arm forward, Jack reached desperately for the gun. It was just out of his reach, when he suddenly felt his grip tighten around the gun. Which was odd, because it wasn't close enough for him to get such a hold before. Jack ignored the feeling and propped himself up with his injured arm, shutting the pain out.

He set his sight on the nearest trooper and opened fire. The gun had surprising kick for a rifle, but not enough to throw Jacks aim off. The first Imperial fell from a shot to the skull. The second jumped and looked to see Jack.

There was time for him to register the act, realize he couldn't bear his rifle on the crippled teen in time… and Jack fired again. The bolt washed over the man's chest, and he slammed against the wall. Then, he slid down and lay there with his head at an odd angle.

Time sped back up and Jack let the rifle drop from his hand. His face went pale at the realization of what he'd done. He'd just killed someone. Two someone's. People with friends and family waiting for them to come home… And he'd ended any chance of that happening.

He felt sick, disgusted, and horrified all at once. But there was no time for him to focus on it. Blaster fire continued to whiz by, and the forms of Jace and Nico were slowly being pushed back by the onslaught. Looking to his side, Jace went wide eyed when he saw Jack.

"Holy…You're alive!?" he seemed more shock Jack had survived than anything.

Jack pushed himself up with his good arm and tested his legs, "Yeah, I'm alive…shoulders busted though…" he muttered groggily.

An explosive round whizzed by them, exploding in the hangar, "We'll worry about that later." Jace said, unleashing a volley of blaster fire back at the enemy, "We need to go!"

"Roger that!" Nico agreed and ran towards the exit. Jack and Jace followed after without a complaint, right as Kao and Satele finished the Imperials occupying the hangar. Jack and Nico ran directly towards them, while Jace stayed behind for a moment. He hit a panel by the door with his fist, prompting the large steel doors to slowly shut. He continued firing towards the enemy before they shut with a definitive boom.

Then, the Trooper fired a small blast at the panel reducing it to a smoking wreck. With the door sealed for now, Jace moved to join up with the others.

"My ship!" Nico cried. Jack followed his gaze, gently holding his arm, and raised a brow. Nico's 'ship' as it were was far from impressive. It was a large brown grey thing, and looked far uglier than the shuttles the Troopers used. A large section of the ceiling had fallen next to the star ship, leaving deep gashes in its side.

Kao looked at it worriedly, "Will she fly?"

"She's not pretty," Nico admitted, "But she's tough."

A small look of relief spread over the groups faces. Had his ship been destroyed, then they would've been in a real bind. Kao looked over at Jack and saw his injury. Immediately he opened his mouth to ask what happened (And question Jace on the disappearance of Frederick) when the low hum of star ship engines caught their attention.

A sleek black and grey ship entered the hangar, blocking the exit as it turned to the side to face them. It set itself down gently, and it's side opened up to produce a small ramp. Steam poured from the ramp, temporarily hiding it from view. However, the two Jedi and Jack felt shivers run up their spines.

Nothing but malevolence emanated from the starship. And then, two figures began walking down the ramp. One was thin and dressed in thick black robes. He wore a mask and hood that concealed his face. The mask was made of a thick black metal, with brass bands wrapping around the face.

The other was a tall thickly built man, whose pale face was barely visible under the large black cloak and hood that he wore. Shiny black armor flashed under the cloak, and a powerful stride was easily visible. One look, one look at them told Jack all he needed to know about who they were.

Sith.

Kao's face took a dark tone, "Captain, prep your ship." he ordered, "This is our fight." Kao left no room for debate, and shot off towards the two Sith, with Satele in tow.

Nico nodded, "Come on!" and ran towards his ship.

Jack sent a reluctant look at the two Jedi, before following after Nico with Jace. He'd just get in the way if he tried to interfere. After all, he was no Jedi.

Within seconds the three entered the starship, running by a small droid working in the halls, "T7, cut the ion cannons!" Nico ordered as he sprinted by. The droid beeped and whirred excitedly, backing off the wall and nearly bumping into Jack.

The teen let out a sigh and stepped to the side, clutching his arm, "Completely useless." he hissed to himself.

Outside, Kao and Satele charged towards their Sith counterparts, whose crimson blades flashed in the now dim light of the dying station. The two Jedi activated their sabers right as they met head to head with their counterparts. Satele leaped over the head of the larger one, unleashing a barrage of quick blows against his saber.

Kao attacked the thinner one, who wielded a double blade like his apprentice, and quickly engaged him. The two traded blows for a few brief moments before the Sith swung at his head with his lower blade. Kao slid forward on his knees, jumped to his feet, and dodged to the side as the Sith sent a straight thrust for his head.

With a single strike, Kao knocked the blade away from his face and sent a series of quick blows against his opponent, quickly finding they were evenly matched.

Satele's luck was not as good. Being the less experienced of the two, the massive pale skinned Sith easily proved to be a match for her. She struck upwards at him with the upper half of her blade, only for him to block it with his own ruby saber. They locked for a moment, which gave the Sith time to grab her elongated hilt.

His grip was like iron and he ripped the blade from her grasp, tossing it to the side. Satele was left defenseless as the Sith slammed his knee into her gut, knocking the wind out of her. She fell to the ground, fighting for breath. The Sith raised his blade overhead, ready to strike her down.

At that moment, Kao spun away from his opponent and flung his saber forward like a boomerang. His Sith counterpart ducked under the blow, and the saber continued spinning forward until it collided with the blade of Satele's opponent right as he brought it down in an overhead arc.

The two blades bounced off each other, Kao using the force to bring his own blade spinning back to him while the Sith was buffeted by the blow. Satele got back to her feet and jumped up, kicking the Sith away and calling her lightsaber back to engage him. All of this happened within seconds, literally the blink of an eye.

But that was how the combat worked between Jedi and Sith. Using the Force, their reflexes and reaction times were inhuman, faster than any organic being could hope to track. This lead to a lightshow of dazzling proportions as the two sides dueled each other.

Kao struck a series of lightning blows at the thin limbed Sith, who blocked each one successfully. As he blocked the last one though, Kao followed through with a full spin behind his fist. The Sith was knocked away and turned to the side as Satele leaped up at him, blade held at the ready.

He was prepared though, and his arm shot up to unleash a massive storm of Force lightning on the Padawan. All his hate and rage was unleashed in that single blow, knocking Satele backwards. Kao used this momentary lapse in judgment to roll away from the Sith towards his Padawan and gather himself.

Realizing Kao had changed his position, the Sith turned to face him and charged back at the Jedi master. The Zabrak would have none of that though. Instead he called upon the Force and thrust his hand forward, unleashing a vicious blast of Force Energy against the Sith.

He was sent careening through the air, his lightsaber deactivating for the moment, before crashing and rolling across the ground. Coming to his knees, the Sith skid to a stop a fair distance away from the Jedi.

Kao deactivated his lightsaber as Satele got back to her feet, her own saber in hand. Sparing a moment to check on her, Kao was relieved to see she had only suffered minor injuries. Something he had no time to think over, as Nico's ship began to take off, the rubble around it collapsing into pieces.

The thin limbed Sith did not like this at all, and got back to his feet. He let a blast of Force Lightning scratch at the surface of the ship, only to leave thin burns in its hull and nothing more. The side hatch opened and a cannon shot went flying at the attacking Imperial. He raised his arms and a shield of force energy deflected it, but served its purpose.

The Sith was distracted, allowing Jace to lower his weapon and lean out of the ramp way and yell, "Come on!" to the Jedi.

Kao looked at the star ship and back at the Sith for a brief moment. If they both left, the Sith would easily destroy the starship, either by crashing it or blocking its exit. They needed a distraction, a distraction that would last against to very powerful Sith.

He put a hand on Satele's shoulder, "Go Satele." he ordered her softly. Her eyes went wide as she realized what was happening.

"You must walk a different path." he would not be the one to train Jack as he'd wished. Kao knew now that another would train him. His successor, the young Padawan before him. Even if she did not know that herself yet.

Satele bowed her head as her master slowly stepped backwards, before turning and running towards the two approaching Sith. As he ran though, she called out to him, "Master!" and sent her saber spinning towards him.

Kao leaped into the air and spun, grabbing the airborne hilt and activating both blades. He landed amongst the two Sit, his twin blades knocking them both aside in a flash of sparks. Spinning the two blades with expert precision, Kao easily deflected their blows as the Sith were caught off guard by this sudden shift in tactics, and the skill of this single Jedi.

Looking at her master with one last forlorn expression, Satele turned and sprinted towards Nico's ship. She ran up a pile of rubble the ship was passing and leaped into the air. She flipped from one platform to another, before jumping towards the open ramp.

Jace held his hand out to her, and just caught the girl right as the ramp began to shut. Whether by purpose or accident, Nico's ship slammed into the Sith shuttle shortly after that, knocking it aside in a shower of fiery sparks. But while the Sith ship was left heavily damaged by this, Nico's ship proved to be as tough as he claimed, and held under the stress. Then, it shot forwards out of the hangar into space.

Upon entering the ship, Nico's voice crackled over the speaker, "On those guns, _now_!" he ordered.

"Come on, this way!" Jace motioned Satele forward and they ran to the guns. They passed by what could be considered the rec room of the ship, and where Jack was resting right now. His injured arm and lack of knowledge on the tech meant that he was pretty much useless at that point. However, upon seeing Satele run by, he wondered…

"Where's Kao?"

_Korriban Space Station…_

Kao flipped over the Sith Lord's double blades and spun his Padawans blade to deflect the larger Sith's blade. Then, he flipped mid air between their intersecting blades, before landing back on his feet.

He planted them firmly and crossed the blades as both Sith struck down at him in the exact time frame. Kao grit his teeth and shoved them both aside, deactivating the secondary blade on his blue saber. He used both blades to buffet the large Sith and spun around with them crossed as the skinnier Sith unleashed his Force lightning on him.

The lightning was absorbed into his blades, before Kao slashed to the side and redirected it into the other Sith. The large Sith stumbled back with a growl of pain while Kao spun across the floor and slashed his blades against the other Sith's mask.

The Sith's mask was slashed off and went clattering to the floor as the Sith stumbled back, his hood falling away. The warrior looked back up at Kao, confirming his suspicions. The Sith had deep red skin, with bony ridges jutting from his skin and sunken eyes, which were a glowing red with sickly yellow sprinkled through it. A pureblood Sith, the original inhabitants of Korriban. This truly was the original Sith, as Kao had feared.

A new scar was glowing a bright orange across his face, angering the pureblooded Sith even further. He let out a roar of rage and charged forward at Kao once again. Kao blocked and redirected the blow, and came to another assumption. This was the master, and the human was his apprentice.

Such a revelation had no significance at the moment for Kao though. Both Sith were charging at him again. The Jedi spun in a circle of blue and green death, both blocking the attempted blows by his opponents.

Kao blocked two simultaneous blows at once, before spinning mid air and slamming his right hand into the ground. A surge of Force energy shoved them both away, buying him the briefest or respites. One that didn't last, as the master spun his blade and charged forward.

The two exchanged blows, the Sith's blade a glittering red razor of death, and Kao's blades nothing but a swirling sea of emerald and sapphire. Their blows grew faster and faster, until Kao took a double step back. The Sith lord used his weapons long range to strike from above at the Zabrak. Kao deflected the blow with his emerald blade, and thrust forward with the sapphire one.

Using his momentum, Kao forced the Sith Lord to spin his saber to keep up the block. Seizing his advantage, Kao deflected the lower edge one last time, and spun with his back facing the Sith. The Sith raised his blade up to attack the vulnerable Jedi, only to feel a red hot pain pierce his abdomen.

He froze, stock still, and slowly looked to see the secondary blade of his Padawans lightsaber firmly embedded in his midsection. Surprise filled the Sith's face, until Kao wrenched his blade free of the Sith's stomach. The Sith's own blade deactivated and his free arm grabbed at his stomach. With a pained expression, the Sith fell to the ground, not dead by mortally injured were it not for his power in the force.

Kao got back to his feet, breathing hard whilst scanning the area. One Sith, the master, had been dealt with. Now he simply needed to fend off the Apprentice. From there, he could find the remaining staff of the station and help them fend off the remaining borders. They would inevitably lose, this was obvious. But Kao was going to make the Imperials work for every inch of ground they tried to gain.

A rattle of steel on metal suddenly filled the air, followed by a silver object shooting by Kao's head. It took him only a second to recognize it as the Sith's blade, and to recognize who had called it. The Apprentice, who now wielded both lit blades, crossed in an X over his chest. And a look of calm rage on his face.

The pale faced Sith began stalking towards Kao, who recognized the threat of such rage and hate. He called on the Force and lifted a piece of debris behind him. And then sent it flying at the Apprentice. The Apprentice sliced through it with a single blade, still walking towards Kao.

Kao reached into the Force again and lifted a larger supply table into the air. He then sent it spiraling towards the Apprentice. He slashed both blades up, and appeared unharmed. Kao took in a breath and dug deep into the force. This time he seized upon a large cylindrical engine behind him from a wrecked ship.

The massive piece of machinery slowly lifted into the air, and with a yell Kao sent it flying at the Apprentice. Instead of simply blocking it though, the Apprentice charged towards the engine. He leaped up at it, blades fully extended. The engine detonated in a ball of fire.

And the Apprentice emerged from it unharmed. Fire tugged at his cloak, but his black armor was unharmed. He appeared as a phantom of hate and anger before Kao, and came roaring down at him. His blades slammed into Kao's own, immediately forcing him on the defensive.

Each blow hit with thunderous force, shoving the Zabrak farther and farther back. The Apprentice slashed at him with a reverse hold on his saber, knocking Satele's saber out of his hand. He delivered several more fast and powerful blows against Kao, before shoving his blade against the Jedis own.

Their blades crackled and sparked off each other. Kao nearly ran backwards, powerless under the relentless assault. He broke off from the Apprentice's attack and blocked the next few. His defense grew tired though, his parry's barely in time to block each thrust.

In a single definitive stroke, Kao suddenly felt his emerald blade leave his grip. He was left defenseless before the Sith, who promptly slashed both blades across his waist. Kao froze in place, feeling no pain. Only a soothing numbness that spread up from his waist into his chest.

The world moved slowly around him, spinning as he hit the floor with a single thud. His eyes stared up at the ceiling blankly, darkness clouding his vision. Soon, he would be one with the Force, like so many before him.

And as he let loose his final breath, Kao realized…

He was not afraid…

_Nico's ship…_

Jack clutched at his chest and gasped for air. He felt as if something horrible had just happened. Like a part of himself had suddenly just…upped and died. He couldn't explain it, couldn't understand it. All he could do was clutch at his chest and stare at the floor while trying to control the pain he felt over this sudden loss.

He failed miserably.

And as the ship dodged fighters and even maneuvered through a Sith cruiser, all Jack could do was stare at the floor.

Stare at the floor and weep.

_Korriban Space Station…_

The Jedi fell to the floor in pieces, his eyes quickly clouding as death took him. The Apprentice deactivated the sabers and hooked one to his belt. With the Jedi filth dead, there was only one other piece of business to attend to.

Said business was sitting on the edge of the hangar, looking at Korriban as the Sith fleet approached it. The Apprentice walked up behind his master, briefly looking at the might of the Empire before him. Pointless to bring so many ships for one poorly defended location. But Korriban was no ordinary location, and the overwhelming of force would have ensured no one lived to tell the Republic.

Would have.

The Apprentice looked down at the weak and dying Sith pureblood, "They've escaped master. You failed." he told him.

They had one mission, to make sure no one escaped the station alive. And they had failed. Or rather, his master had failed.

"No Malgus…" the pureblood rasped, "This, is only the beginning!"

He grimaced and grabbed at his midsection again, breathing hard. Malgus looked over the legendary Sith homeworld with the proper awe and respect expected of him. His hand fell to his saber.

"Yes…" he agreed.

"After a thousand years, Korriban is ours again."

Malgus activated his saber and brought it to the ready, "Welcome home." he sneered.

And in one fell strike, his master fell to the floor, dead.

**A/N: So sorry this wasn't out yesterday guys. Lot of work in this chapter, and I had some rather bad news concerning colleges come up, so I didn't really work on it all that much. But it's out now, and it is EPIC! I really hope you guys like this chapter, I poured my all into it while writing. And I'm still not sure I did a good enough job. Still, I hope you guys liked it, and next up…Coruscant. Remember to review with ideas, critique, etc. Or, PM me with ideas. Either one works for me. Bye!**


	6. Chapter 5

Chapter 5: Pain

_Korriban…_

The surface of Korriban was a desolate desert wasteland. Dead and unkind to anyone or anything that dared to crawl along its twisted surface. And for nearly one thousand years the planet had been just that. A dead uninhabited world that twisted and killed all those who tried and failed to call it home.

Now to most this would mean the planet needed to be avoided. To not step foot on such a dark malicious world and tempt fate. Only Darth Revan's Dark Jedi had dared to inhabit the planet during the Jedi Civil War. And such times had passed the planet by centuries ago. It had no hate, no darkness to nurture itself.

Until the first Sith touched down. A lone shuttle descended from orbit, one of thousands, and made its way towards a large clearing surrounded on all sides by massive towering mesa cliffs. The silver black ship was heavily damaged along its port bow, but managed to stay airborne despite these injuries.

Finding a single lone clearing at the edge of the area large enough for it, the shuttle touched down gently. Sparks flew from its damaged hull and the servos and motors within groaned in protest as it settled down. A single hatch slowly slid open with an eerie creak. Steam and smoke spilled out onto the desert landscape.

A single figure slowly made his way down out of the starship and stopped at the edge of the ramp. No true Sith had set foot on Korriban for a thousand years. He would be the first to do so. As was proper.

Malgus stepped off the platform, his heavy boots thudding against the desert earth silently. He walked forwards, out from the shadows of his starship and into the harsh desert sun. The searing light burned against his pale skin, but he paid it no mind. Korriban was a planet for the strong, the determined. Not the weak and pathetic, like the Jedi he had fought.

Sure, the Jedi master had been a mild challenge for the former Sith Apprentice. But if he was the best the Jedi Order had at their disposal, then the Empire would quickly and effortlessly crush their enemies with ease with little challenge.

Malgus examined the area he'd chosen to land in. An abandoned Sith temple that had been sent into ruin eons ago. Lines of ruined red stone lined the edges of the area, while a few pillars leaned out of the ground ominously. And surprisingly, the faces of long forgotten Sith Lords were still engraved on the pillars.

Awe plastered itself onto Malgus' face. This was the start of his very existence. The original Sith. He began walking through the ruins, taking in the details. The walk through was determined and single minded. Though a thought did enter Malgus' mind as he walked. He almost wished he'd let his master live.

Just so he could see the birthplace of his race. But such thoughts were quickly banished from his mind. Darth Vindican was a powerful Sith to be sure. But he had failed the Empire. He had been weak. And there was only one fate deserving of the weak.

Malgus suddenly stopped upon realizing he was dead center in the middle of the ruin. A ruined circle of stones encircled him. Thousands of years ago, a dome might have stood there to allow the sunlight to pour in and illuminate the chamber. Now it was nothing but death and forgotten memories.

His awe gone, disgust soon replaced Malgus' face. The planet served no tactical point for the Empire. It was purely a moral victory for the Sith, nothing more. They would gain nothing from this attack. And in fact, they had lost something vital in the attack. The element of surprise. Malgus knew that with the Jedi having escaped, it was only a matter of time before the Republic responded.

It may take weeks or months, but they would react. And then, their greatest strength would be gone.

Malgus tightened his fist, leather creaking under the stress, "It is of no matter." he rasped, "Surprise or not, we will grind them to dust beneath our heels." he declared to no one in particular.

No one but Korriban itself. And the planet seemed to like that declaration quite a bit. Malgus was moving back to what was now _his _shuttle, before sensing something. Hate, anger, uncontrollable passion. All of this he felt emanating from the ruins. Malgus whirled around to see where its source might be.

He found none, saw none…but he did see Sith Lord faces begin spewing dark shadows from their mouths. Malgus had no time to react, as the shadow raced toward him and engulfed the Sith.

There was no pain for him… But what he saw, what he saw was not Korriban.

Instead Malgus saw gleaming towers that filled the sky, their edges gleaming in the sunlight. Thousands of black objects dotted the sky, and looking down, he saw nothing but steel and glass. Even though he had never been there in his lifetime, Malgus knew where he was. Coruscant. The Republic capital planet, home to the Senate.

And before Malgus, was the tall gleaming towers of the Jedi Temple. The home of the filth that had sent his people fleeing into space. Malgus felt his rage begin to build once again, and his desire for vengeance increasing ten fold.

Suddenly, as if in response to this, the scene shifted. No more was Coruscant a gleaming world of steel and glass. Now, fire raged through the city planet. Towers groaned and collapsed as the fires ate away at their internal structures. Imperial cruisers blotted out the sky, thousands of fighters shooting the pathetic Republic forces mid air. Fire rained down onto the city, deep below its superstructure.

And to Malgus delight, the Jedi Temple itself was in ruin. The towers collapsed on themselves. The lavish stone and steel statues were reduced to rubble. Fire engulfed the entire structure, consuming it from the inside out. The building began to collapse before Malgus' eyes… Then he returned to the present, on Korriban.

Millions of thoughts and questions raced through the Sith's mind. He could not even answer one of them. But he did know one thing for certain. What he'd seen, Coruscant burning, that was his destiny.

He would bring the Republic to its knees, and when they cried out for mercy, when they could no longer fight… He, Malgus, the former boy known as Veradun, would reduce them to nothing but bitter ashes to be forgotten in the winds of change. This was his fate, his destiny.

And no one, not soldier, not politician, and especially not Jedi, would stop him…

_Hyperspace…_

Satele sat in the lower gun of Nico's ship, slumped against the control panel. She faintly watched the blue white appearance Hyperspace fly by, but paid it little attention. After escaping the Sith, Satele had simply stayed down there to grieve. She'd felt Kao's death while they were escaping, but had managed to push it away for the time.

Now though, with no immediate danger to the ship, Satele's resolve had failed her. She needed a few moments to herself just to accept what had happened. While Kao hadn't been her master for most of the Padawan's life, he had been a good teacher and a good man. His loss hit Satele hard.

A small part of her wanted to blame Jack for her grief. Things had changed since the teen had arrived on Korriban. Until then, things had remained peaceful and her training progressed steadily. Now, her master was dead, the Sith had returned, and the Republic was in grave danger. Obviously blaming him would give her some outlet for all the negative emotions she felt.

But being a Jedi, Satele did not. Maybe she was a Padawan, but she was not going to blame the teenager for what really was a poor coincidence. Instead, she sat there and slowly calmed herself, meditating in the lower gun the best she could. Her mind slowly drifted and connected to the Force, letting it flow over her. Slowly, Satele took up a better position in the chair with her legs crossed and her hands resting on her thighs. She maintained this pose for about twenty minutes, before opening her eyes and letting out a peaceful sigh.

While her sadness wasn't gone, Satele had managed to calm it for the moment. Her mind was clear and her thoughts sharp. With such distractions gone for now, Satele thought to their current situation. Coruscant was nearly a day away by Hyperspace. It would take time to arrive. Plenty of time for her to tell Jack what Kao had wanted to tell him.

Satele shot straight up as a sudden realization hit her. When she'd last seen Jack, he'd been fairly injured. At least holding his arm as if it were injured. And he was Force sensitive as well. Satele wanted to hit herself for being so selfish. She knew how to react to deaths of Jedi in the Force. Though all death could be felt through the Force, only Jedi were particularly noticeable. They were so connected to the Force that their deaths left gaps in it for all Force sensitive's to feel. Meaning Jack had felt Kao's death without knowing what he was feeling.

Satele scrambled up the ladder to the main hall through the ship, "Stupid stupid stupid!" she hissed to herself. While she'd been grieving, and rightfully so, she'd forgotten to make sure that the other Force sensitive was fine.

Luckily, Satele didn't have to go far to fine the teen. He was where they'd left him, in the rec. room of the ship. Jace had gone up front to the cockpit to keep Nico in line. And apparently hadn't bothered to check on Jack in the meanwhile. Satele made a note to talk to the trooper about that later.

At the moment she had to focus on Jack. He was leaning against the seat, his right arm dangling at an odd angle. His face was pale and coated with sweat while his eyes were red and puffy. He'd been crying earlier. Waves of sadness radiated off him through the Force, and Satele sensed another emotion. Confusion.

Jack didn't know why he had felt that sudden loss earlier, and so felt very confused. However, upon seeing Satele, he brightened up slightly. The Padawan moved into the room cautiously while Jack tried and failed to sit up.

He gasped in pain and grabbed at his arm. Despite this obvious pain, he looked back at Satele, "…So…" he wheezed, "Glad to see you…made it…"

Satele nodded and sat in the one chair opposite the seats built into the wall, "I did." she confirmed.

Jack let his confusion show, "But…where's Kao..?" he asked, "He never…I never saw him…."

Satele looked to the side, not sure how to explain this. Jack wasn't a Jedi (Yet) and his emotions were far more loose and unbound. If she told him what happened to Kao, there was no telling how he would take it. And Satele had very little experience dealing with raw emotion. Of course, she couldn't lie either. Not only was it against what the Jedi stood for, but Jack would quickly discover her lie.

So, Satele took a deep almost shaky breath, "Jack, Master Kao Cen Darach stayed behind on the station…" Jack went dead silent and his face became unreadable.

"He stayed to make sure we could escape. The Sith killed him shortly before we jumped to Hyperspace." she tried to read Jacks face, but again it was unreadable.

Upon hearing this, Jack didn't say anything at first. Perhaps it was too much for him, maybe it had simply overwhelmed the teen. After a moment of this painful silence though, Jack opened his mouth.

"That's…that's not true…" he tried to deny. But he didn't sound like he believed it. More like he was in denial.

"Jack…" Satele started.

"He can't be…" Jack interrupted, looking at the ground, "I mean… why!? Why would he!?"

"Jack, please listen." Staele asked calmly.

"No!" Jack cried, "Kao can't be dead! He can't! It's not true!"

"Search your feelings Jack." Satele ordered, still maintaining her calm. A part of her _wanted _to grab the boy and shake him silly. But his injury and the high emotions of the moment told her that would not work out well.

Jack paused for a brief moment at that, "You know what I say is true. You felt Kao's loss just as I did before we jumped."

Now that, that got a different reaction out of Jack. More shock and confusion, but far less anger, "Wh-what? I do-don't…"

Pain lanced up his side when Jack shifted, making the teen visibly wince and gasp. Satele frowned slightly, "Hold on." she ordered him and stood up. She approached him and gently grabbed his arm and shoulder.

And in one swift move, popped the dislocated limb back into place. Jack stiffened and yelled out in pain before Satele released him and returned to her seat, "Better?" she asked.

The teen nodded hesitantly, rotating his arm to try and see if it still hurt. It was sore, but fine besides that. Jack was immensely relieved to find out he had not broken his shoulder like he feared. However, with his injury gone, he was able to focus back on what Satele was talking about a moment before.

"Wh-what did you mean I 'sensed' Kao…dying?" he asked hesitantly. He'd managed to get over his initial shock now, and wanted to know what the Jedi meant. If what she said was true, then he already grieved for his friend… He just didn't know it at the time.

"You sensed Kao's death through the Force," Satele explained, "All living things are connected through the Force. When one dies, a Force sensitive can pick it up. Those untrained in the ways of the Force are often left decimated by the experience. Like you were…"

Jack was speechless. Beyond speechless, he was utterly flabbergasted by what this meant. So of course, he reacted in the only way that anyone in his current situation would react. He gaped, resembling a fish out of water.

"You mean, I'm…"

"You are Force sensitive, yes." Satele answered, "Master Kao sensed it, and I too can sense it. The Force is with you. It is weak from disuse, and likely a past event that made you suppress the connection. But Master Kao believed that with the proper training you could realize your full potential."

Still reeling from the previous revelation, Jack only managed to squeak out what he said next, "Tr-training…you mean…become a Jedi? Like you?"

Satele nodded, "Yes, you could become a Jedi. Master Kao planned to bring you before the Jedi Council after I completed my final trial. And…" Satele took in a breath, "If you are willing to, I will stand on your behalf before the Council. I can help you convince them that despite your age, you are worth training."

Silence once more emanated from Jack in droves. This was all so much to take in. He was Force sensitive, he could become a Jedi? Learn to fight and control the force, do what Satele and Kao could do?

Maybe…get revenge on the Sith that took his friends life? Perhaps…

Satele scowled, "But I warn you now." she started. Jack looked at her and saw the cold edge in her eyes that matched her voice perfectly.

"If you decide to join the Order, it will not be of a desire for revenge. I want you to swear to me that you will not let your emotions dictate your choice. Letting them cloud your judgment is a set path to the Dark Side. And I refuse to be involved in the creation of a Sith."

Jack had a feeling she was not kidding. That if he lied and she later found out, the woman would not hesitate to put him in the ground. He took a few deep breaths and nodded at the young woman.

"I won't let my emotions control me. You have my word Satele." he promised with utter sincerity.

Satele's gaze softened, "I'm glad you understand." she said.

Jack rubbed his right shoulder and nodded. He said nothing for the moment though, before something occurred to him, "Satele, I'm…sorry for your loss. About Kao that is. I know he was your master and all…"

A somber expression crossed the Padawan's face, "Thank you Jack. Kao was a good friend and teacher. He will be missed amongst the order…"

Silence over took the two, neither sure what to say next. Coruscant was still hours away, and after everything that had happened, it was rather hard to carry a casual conversation. Jack rolled his shoulder again, feeling it move smoothly without any troubles. Satele definitely fixed it for certain. The pain was quite gone.

Realizing the silence was going to kill him, Jack decided to say one last thing, "So…how do I use the Force?" he asked.

**A/N: Apologies for the short chapter. But I figured after the last chapter, a short breather was necessary. Trust me, the next chapter will be much longer. We arrive on Coruscant, Jack meets the Council, and the question is asked. Will he become a Padawan? What do you all think, hmm? Let me know in the reviews or via PM. Oh, and before I forget, the poll is still open for one more chapter. Currently its 23 in favor of a pairing and 4 in favor of no pairing, so…if you don't want a pairing, go even the score. That said, please review with critique or PM with ideas and questions. Bye!**


	7. Chapter 6

Chapter 6: Coruscant

_Himalayan Mountains…_

Arcee groaned while pulling herself up the ledge. The icy winds tore at her chassis, and the blizzard obscured her vision constantly. True to Optimus' orders, she'd begun exploring every major mountain range on Earth looking for her partner. Problem was, they really shouldn't have started with the Himalayans.

While by no stretch difficult to climb, they were the tallest mountains in the world. Meaning there was a lot of ground to cover and for Arcee, very little time to cover it. Time was of the essence, and it felt like it was running out.

For over a week they'd searched and searched and searched for Jack. And every time they returned to the field, they found nothing. Arcee had found nothing, Bulkhead and Bee had found nothing, the kids had found nothing. It felt like they were wasting their time at this point. A feeble attempt by them to deny what was becoming increasingly obvious.

Jack was gone, and they would never find him.

Arcee refused to believe that though. Jack had survived Airachnid and Cybertron. He would survive on his own in the wilderness, she knew it. With his space suit, no environment on Earth could hurt him. Long as it was intact, he would be safe from the elements.

The femme finally managed to get up the cliff face and pressed herself against the mountain side. She looked over the massive range before her, dozens of mountains rising, towering against the clouded sky. Snow ripped through the air, a screen of white before her optics. And that didn't even take the howling wind into consideration.

Looking down, Arcee was nearly overcome with a dizzying spell of vertigo when she saw how high up she was. The ground below was coated in a thick fog that made it next to impossible to see. It was a long way down, and not even a Cybertronian could survive a fall like that. Arcee pressed herself firmly against the mountain face, her winglets digging into the snow slightly.

If Jack really was lost in the Himalaya's, finding him would be like finding a servo in a scrap heap. A million to one odds honestly. And even those were fairly modest odds if Arcee was honest with herself.

Her optics shuttered close for a moment. If she was honest with herself, Arcee knew that Jack was gone. That he would likely never be found. June claimed he was still alive, but Arcee didn't believe it anymore. Not at her core. Not at her spark. The teen who'd made her herself again was gone, and all by a freak accident.

After all the pain they'd endured together, all their time good and bad… Jack was gone. Taken from her.

Arcee let out an angered cry. It wasn't fair! Why did she always lose those closest to her! She'd lost Tailgate to Airachnid, a circumstance that had nearly destroyed Arcee's mind. Then Cliff was killed by that scum sucking piece of scrap Starscream, before Megatron turned him into an undead Dark Energon zombie. And now she'd lost Jack. Not to the war itself…

But to an unlucky event. The ground bridge was too damn close to the space bridge! Raf should have known better, they all should have known better! But they didn't, and now he was gone!

Arcee's servos dug into the mountain side, earth crumbling under her grip. Anti-freeze started to leak from her optics, trailing down her faceplate and gently falling into the snow.

Through the entire Himalayan's, a single solitary noise could be heard. A mournful cry, the cry of a person who lost someon close to them. It sounded once through the mountain range, and then cut off, letting the howling wind once more dominate the area.

Arcee vented heavily on the cliff side, tears still spilling down her faceplate. But that had helped vent her frustrations. The femme tightened her servos and grit her denta in determination.

"I'll find you Jack." she promised. Arcee carefully turned back to face the mountain side and looked up its steep side. She saw a nearby ledge jutting out three or four feet. In a single move, Arcee scrambled up the wall and grabbed tightly onto the wall.

"I don't care how long it takes," she whispered while pulling herself up, "But I will find you. I swear it."

_Hyperspace…_

Three hours. That's how long he and Satele had talked. After asking more about the Force itself, Satele had spent some time trying a good way to summarize it .What she told him was a _very _basic description of the Force and how it worked through the universe. But it was enough for Jack to further understand it.

But after about three hours, Satele had decided she'd told him enough for the time being and headed to the cockpit of the ship, leaving Jack in the rec. room to rest. He didn't know if there were any private quarter's aboard the ship, so he just sat against the seat instead, slumped comfortably in place.

With Satele busy and Jack alone once again, he was left with only his thoughts. And boy did he have a lot to think about. Knowing more about the Force, Jack realized that some of the more bizarre circumstances in his early life suddenly made sense. For some reason, he remembered things always breaking around him when he was mad at someone. Toys, trees, and on a rare occasion, bone.

While Jack had never directly been involved in those events, he'd been scared by their timing. Eventually the incidents stopped, and Jack assumed he'd just had a string of bad luck. But looking back on it now, Jack realized that he had actually been using the Force.

Only thing was, he'd been using the Dark Side. Letting his anger and emotions control him. And people had paid for it dearly. Jack reasoned that his fear of hurting people on accident must have formed some sort of mental block on his connection to the Force. That was why when he got angry in his teenage years, no one was inexplicably hurt.

Now though, there was no need for such a block. With Jedi training, he could learn to control it, learn to finally bring those wild powers under his control. Protect others instead of hurting them, and actually be of use. That was something that always bugged him. During the siege of the station, he'd been useless. All he'd done was get his shoulder dislocated and killed two guards.

Frederick and Jace had put their lives on the line defending them, while Kao and Satele had bought them time to make it to Nico's ship. And now both Frederick and Kao were both dead while Jack was still alive and well.

It hardly seemed fair to the teenager.

But then, even before he'd been sent to this universe or galaxy, he'd always felt like a burden. Sure, at the base he'd managed to be of some use with the key, but if Optimus had just given it to say, Arcee or Bulkhead, it would have been in far better hands than his own. Plus, he'd still be home if Optimus had given it to one of his bots.

Jack paused at that and closed his hands together, "Home…" he murmured quietly.

It was weird, but for some reason Jack hadn't felt an overwhelming desire to go home. Oh sure, he wanted to see his friends and family, but… He felt just…_Better _in this universe. As if he was meant to come here, like it was some sort of destiny.

Talking with Kao and Satele had been the first time someone had really been interested in him at all. Sure, the others respected him and he appreciated it greatly. But talking with those two, some sort of innate feeling made him feel like he belonged amongst those like Satele and Kao.

"Huh… maybe the Force has more influence on me than I thought." Jack ran a hand through his hair, wincing at the soreness in his arm. It might not be dislocated, but the muscle was sore and he was pretty sure he was quite bruised.

Pain aside, Jack had felt an odd calm coming over him since Satele had told him he was Force sensitive. Probably just the end of his adrenaline rush, but Jack felt more of a connection now with the Padawan. She hadn't exactly been welcoming to Jack when they first met, but now he felt like they had a mutual understanding of each other. If her offer of helping him join the Order was anything to go by that is.

He hoped at the very least they could become friends. Satele seemed like a loyal person, and emanated some of Kao's qualities. Obviously the Zabrak had rubbed off on the girl quite well.

Jack suddenly stretched and yawned again, this time laying out on the whole of the couch. His feet dangled off the edge, but Jack didn't care. With the calmness in his center, the teen was feeling quite tired now. There was no immediate danger and he was alone, so going to sleep sounded very alluring to the teen.

And within a few minutes, that's exactly what he did. Sleep.

_Later…_

Jack did not dream during his time asleep thankfully. No weird dreams of a burning Jasper or anything like that. Just a peaceful somewhat comfortable sleep. Couches could only provide so much comfort to a person after all. Still, it was a good enough sleep for the teen after such a chaotic day.

And unfortunately, his sleep was interrupted when Nico's voice crackled over the comm. _"Sorry to wake you folks, but we're arriving at Coruscant. ETA: 5 minutes."_ he announced.

Jack let out a yelp and fell off the couch, landing on his injured shoulder, "OW!" he yelled, pain rushing up his side. That was… unimaginably painful for the teen. Like he was being stabbed with a dozen needles.

Rolling on his back, Jack clutched at his shoulder for a moment before letting it go and sighing heavily, "Ow…" he squeaked.

There was a sound of boots on metal plating, and then silence. Jack leaned his head up and saw Satele standing in the door way, arms crossed and a slightly amused expression on her face.

"Have a good sleep?"

"Not as good as you'd think…" Jack muttered while pulling himself up.

Once he was standing, Jack rubbed his shoulder again, letting out a tired sigh, "Wait, what did Nico say?"

Satele looked down the hall towards the cockpit, "We're arriving at Coruscant soon." she looked back at Jack, "You may want to see this. It's always best to see Coruscant from orbit first."

That statement confused Jack, making him tilt his head to the side, "Why?"

A small smile was the only answer he received, "You'll see. Now come." she started down the hall, leaving Jack to catch up.

He quickly caught up with the woman, noting that she was actually about his height. Funny, he'd never noticed that before. The two arrived at the cockpit, where Nico was stationed. And he looked exhausted. He looked ragged and unkempt, as if he'd been up since they left Korriban. Jack didn't know it, but the smuggler had stayed at the helm through the entire flight. He was not going to risk getting caught by the Sith if he could help it. Hence why he was so exhausted.

Nico looked over his shoulder at Satele and Jack, "Good, you're both up. Where's the boyscout?"

"Sergeant Jace is currently resting. He sustained minor injuries during our escape from Korriban." Satele explained with a hint of formality in her voice. She obviously didn't hold much respect for Nico. Not that the smuggler noticed.

He just turned back to the view screen with a shrug, "Alright then." Nico's eyes flashed over the control panel and he grabbed what looked to be a large throttle, the kind Jack had seen airplane pilots use in movies.

"Here we go folks. Coruscant, dead ahead." he pulled back on the lever and the swirling blue vortex slowed until it was nothing but streaking white dots. And then, the massive planet suddenly appeared into view.

Jack nearly fainted on the spot.

To describe Coruscant was well… The closest thing Jack could think of at the time was that if Cybertron were still alive, Coruscant is what it would look like. The planet was nothing but steel, a massive city engulfed the entire planet. From North to South, East to West, it was nothing but city.

The edges, coated in darkness, were large circles glowing a fiery orange that were nearly blinding to look at. Squinting his eyes, Jack saw dozens of black shapes flying over the orbit of the planet. It took him a moment to realize they were starships. And another moment to realize they must have been _massive _to blot out even a small part of the planet below.

He managed to sum up how he felt about the massive planet in one word, "Wow."

Nico briefly looked up at the shocked teen and smirked, "What, never been to Coruscant before?"

"You could say that…" Jack murmured. Best that as few people as possible knew about where he was from.

"Well then kid," Nico chuckled, "Let me be the first to welcome you to Coruscant." the ship rumbled and they began their descent to the planet, "And if you can make it here, you can make it anywhere."

Judging by the size of the city planet, Jack didn't doubt it. He didn't say that though, he just watched in awe as they slowly descended on the planet. As they slowly descended though, one of the terminals that dotted the cockpit began to beep.

_" Attention unidentified vessel, This is Coruscant ground control. You are to identify yourself and your purpose immediately."_ a voice ordered.

Nico moved to respond, but Satele grabbed his arm before he could, "Allow me Captain. No need to get caught up in Coruscant security."

The smuggler shrugged and leaned back in his chair while Satele took up the comm. "This is Jedi Padawan Satele Shan of the Jedi Order. I am in need of an escort to the Jedi Temple immediately."

The voice was silent for a brief moment before, _"Can you verify your identity Padawan?"_ it asked.

Satele sighed and quickly sent a passcode over to the ground control. Nico let out a low whistle, "Mind if I-"

"No." Satele replied before he could finish.

Jack let out a short laugh while Nico crossed his arms, "Fine, whatever. See if I care." he replied, looking out the window.

There was a beep from the terminal, and the voice crackled back over the comm._ "We have you verified. Welcome to Coruscant Master Jedi."_ the voice said, _"We will escort you to platform 2-D"_

Jack looked at Satele and mouthed the words 'master' at her, clearly confused. She shook her head, "Merely a formal term from non-Jedi." she explained.

"Oh." Jack said. He looked back out the window to see two small fighters saddle up next to Nico's ship. They looked like single wing planes, with two large antenna jutting from either end of the wing. Their paint was a bright white and highlighted with red.

Nico straightened up in his seat and cracked his knuckles, "Right, let's get landing." he muttered to himself. The ship jolted forward for a brief moment before beginning a smooth descent towards Coruscant's surface.

And honestly? It was even more impressive the lower they descended. Jack was wide eyed the entire descent (Oblivious to when Jace finally joined the three) and kept looking about. The towers of Coruscant were soared over head, thousands of feet into the sky. Their metal glass edges shone brightly in the light of the sun. Thousands of flying vehicles filled the sky in straight order.

It was so orderly that Jack guessed a good amount of it was automated. No way an organic driver would drive in such straight lines. He knew he wouldn't. Too tempting to just go flying about wherever they wanted.

As they flew through the city though, Jack noticed something else. There seemed to be no patch of dirt anywhere that wasn't a guardian. It was all steel plating covering the planet. Which seemed odd. Except for Cybertron, Jack couldn't think of a world that would be covered in natural metal.

"Where's the ground?" he asked Satele.

"Deep below the surface." Satele replied, "Coruscant has built upon its surface many times. What you see is the upper levels."

"Oh." Jack whispered, looking over the massive steel structures. He now noticed the occasional trench that cut through them, their bottoms invisible to the naked eye.

"How many?"

"Five thousand one hundred and twenty seven levels up from the crust." Satele answered, "Coruscant is a very old world."

Jack just gawked at that number. Cybertron had been mind blowing enough, but this…this was insane! Over five thousand levels of city? How did something like that happen, wouldn't someone eventually say enough is enough?

He never got a chance to ask another question though, as Satele straightened, "And there it is, the Jedi Temple."

Jack followed his gaze and once again began to gawk. The temple was situated one side of the massive trenches that cut through the cityscape, towering over many nearby buildings. It was shaped in that of a pyramid, except with the top cut off. Four towers rose around each corner, with a single massive tower jutting from the middle. It's steel skin glimmered in the sunlight, nearly blinding Jack.

"Is there anything here that isn't impressive?" he whispered to himself. Honestly, he was starting to consider carrying a basket given the number of times his jaw was hitting the floor. Having grown up in Jasper, the cities on Earth had been intimidating for him. But this!? This was just too much for the poor country boy.

While Jack suffered from a near stroke though, Nico followed his escort down to a level of platforms, a total of six arrayed in a circular pattern, and landed softly on the platform. The hum of the ship died down allowing silence to engulf the cabin. A low hiss sounded through the ship and the sound of metal hitting metal followed.

"Come, we have much to do." Satele motioned for the group to follow.

Jack shook himself and followed Satele and Jace out of the ship. Nico reluctantly tailed them until the four were standing out on the platform. The Jedi Temple cast a long shadow over the group. Jack craned his head back and back and back to look up at it.

"Just…wow."

"Gotta admit," Nico said, hands on his hips, "I've been to Coruscant too many times to count. Never been to the Jedi Temple before though."

A high pitched hum sounded through the air and the group looked to their left. Nico immediately paled the moment he saw the source of the noise. A lone speeder was shooting towards the platform, and a woman in a brown vest, white shirt, blue pants, and with yellow skin was riding it.

"And you know what? Not today either!" Nico made a break for his ship.

"Wait, where are you going!?" Satele called after him.

"Anywhere but here!" The smuggler yelled over his shoulder.

The woman on the speeder called out, "Nico Okarr! You Bantha feeder!"

Nico yelped and scurried inside his ship, the ramp shutting. In an almost cartoonish fashion, the ship took off the platform and turned around to leave as the speeder quickly tailed after it, the woman screaming curses at him.

In a matter of seconds, Nico and his ship shot off into orbit with the woman, and the two starfighters tailing him.

Jack summed up the situation pretty well.

"What the hell just happened?"

"I…I don't know." Jace admitted. Honestly, after what they just saw, no one would really know how to react…

So they just moved on, trying to ignore what just happened for the time being. Satele lead the two on towards a group that was fast approaching them, all of them dressed in long simple brown robes.

The leader was an older man with a strong jaw, crooked nose, grey eyes and graying hair. He had that same air of wisdom and experience to him that Kao had, only to an even greater level. The man approached Satele with a warm smile on his face.

The Padawan stopped and bowed to the man, "Greetings master Ngani Zho." Jack looked at the two surprised. He thought Kao was her master. Maybe Padawans simply referred to higher level Jedi as master?

"And greetings to you my Padawan." Ngani replied, "Now, what brings you to Coruscant so soon?"

Satele straightened back up, "We bring terrible news from Korriban." she explained, "The Sith Empire has returned, and they've taken Korriban."

There were murmurs amongst the Jedi behind Ngani, while the man himself merely frowned and rubbed his chin in thought, "And you know for certain it was the Sith?"

"Yes master." Satele reaffirmed, "Master Kao and I engaged two Sith aboard the station. He stayed behind to allow us to escape and warn the Republic."

Ngani's face grew more serious, "Come, you must tell the High Council. The Trooper will be taken to his superiors."

He was about to move before pausing, "Oh, and bring the boy too." he added, looking Jack over once, "I have a feeling they'll want to meet this young one too."

**A/N: I know I promised the Council this chapter, but I decided my plans for next chapter would simply make this chapter too long. So next chapter, Jack meets the Council. Sweet. That said, what did you guys think of the chapter? Like dislike? Too short? Let me know please, tell me in the reviews and such. Oh! And before I forget, in response to those who keep begging me to write a TFP X Naruto crossover? My answer is this.**

**Hell. No.**

**I will NEVER and I repeat NEVER crossover ANYTHING with that god awful anime! I'm sorry if I stepped on some toes but I HATE that show and would never combine it with one of my favorite TV shows of all time. So stop asking me to!**

***End Rant* Anyway, review with critique and PM with ideas and questions. Bye!**


	8. Chapter 7

Chapter 7: Council

_Jedi Temple, Coruscant…_

If Jack had been impressed by the outside of the Jedi Temple, then the inside left him utterly floored in dumbstruck awe. Sure, he'd imagined the inside was as impressive as the outside, but this blew anything he came up with out of the water.

The temple was as massive on the inside as it was on the outside. Its ceilings stretched dozens of feet high, with tall narrow windows letting natural light pour into the building. The walls and floors were all made of some sort of steel or stone, Jack wasn't sure, inlaid with gold that gave the structure a timeless appearance.

Walkways were placed midway up to the large ceilings, obviously where one of the many floors of the temple were located. Jedi could be seen walking amongst them, and a few occasionally peaked over the edge at the duo being lead through the temple by what Jack guessed were several Jedi masters.

Honestly, the boy had no idea who their guides were. He knew one of them, Nganii Zho, was Satele's master. But the rest he hadn't the foggiest idea on. Being shrouded in brown robes meant Jack could barely see the guides, and so hadn't been able to make out who or what they were. So, instead Jack watched the temple as they walked.

And there was a lot of that. Walking that is. Maybe it was because they were essentially monks, but Jack had a hard time believing a structure _this _big couldn't possibly have some sort of elevator or _something _to speed up the process. But so far this proved to not be the case.

After a time, Jack's legs went sore and he started to pay less attention to the figures ahead of him and examining the temple further. He noted that every once in a while they passed by what appeared to be individual rooms that Jedi sometimes peaked out of. This made Jack wonder exactly how many Jedi were located in the temple.

Apparently a lot, as the group passed by something Jack had not expected. A plaza full of children ranging from five to seven years of age. Some looked human, some had those odd head tendrils Jack had seen on others, and some… well it was pretty obvious they were aliens. And they were all training with odd blades. They were roughly two to three feet long, and lined with glowing yellow lines of energy, whilst emanating a low hum.

The young Jedi were being instructed by a single much older Jedi, who was demonstrating light saber techniques to the trainees, which they imitated with great gusto and a level of skill that made Jack start to doubt himself.

Satele said he might receive Jedi training, but seeing this made him wonder. How was he supposed to become a Jedi if these children could probably already kick his butt with little effort? It didn't seem fair to the sixteen year old, but he tried his best to think positively. Kao seemed to believe he had potential, and so did Satele. And from what Jack had seen, they were both fairly smart and trustworthy.

Jack took a breath and shook his head to calm his nerves. He just needed to go with the flow and see what happened. All else failed, maybe he could sign up for the Republic. Become a trooper like Jace. The soldier may have been a jerk, but Jack saw he could hold his own like the Jedi.

And if Jack was honest with himself, rescue was fairly unlikely at this point. If the others hadn't found him yet, they wouldn't be finding him anytime soon. This galaxy was his now, and Jack was determined to, at the very least, defend its people to the best of his ability. He'd done so back home helping the Autobots, now he'd get to do so again.

'But could I?' Jack wondered to himself. He remembered back to the station where he'd killed those two soldiers. For a time he'd suppressed the memory of what he'd done, but thinking back to that moment sent shivers up Jacks spine. A cold feeling seemed to wrap around his core and made Jack physically shiver.

Those two men had only been following orders like any other soldiers. They weren't mindless Vehicons or a pure evil Decepticon as far as he knew. Yet he'd killed them anyway. Jack felt disgusted with himself. He'd refused to kill Megatron when he was trapped and helpless and felt like it had been the right choice. To take a life was something Jack had thought he'd never be able to do…

Yet he'd done it twice and was overcome with guilt over it. Now that he was able to think about it without the pain in his shoulder, which had been reduced to a dull throb by now, Jack realized that if he was asked to kill again, to take another's life… He might not be able to do it.

If that was the case, he'd be useless on the field of battle. Nothing more than a hindrance to the others, a civilian best left at home to support the war effort. Not somewhere Jack _wanted _to be. No, he wanted to fight, but at the same time didn't.

Two sides of the same coin, fighting over the proper action. It left Jack paralyzed with indecision and worry over his future in this universe.

"Jack?" Satele gently shook the boy by his shoulder. Jack snapped back to reality in an instant.

"Sorry Satele…lost in thought there. Need something?"

Satele stepped to the side to let Jack see Ngani Zho, "I had said we arrived to the Jedi High Council." the Jedi informed him.

Hearing this, Jack immediately looked around. Somehow, during his inner monologue, he'd failed to notice that the scenery had changed. They were now atop one of the many towers (Jack guessed it was the southwestern one) with large windows letting him see out all around Coruscant. It was both breathtaking and a little uneasy for the country boy.

So all he managed to get out was a simple, "Oh."

Ngani chuckled, "Quite the eloquent one, isn't he?" he asked Satele.

Satele gave the silently stunned Jack a look, "If you only knew master," she murmured to herself.

"Right," Ngani clapped his hands together, "Well, the rest of the Council's been called together, or at least the members who could be bothered, and they want to talk to you first Satele."

Ngani looked at Jack, "Can we trust you to stay out here and _not _cause any trouble?"

Jacks head shot back to the man and he nodded hurriedly, "Yes sir."

That made the old Jedi smile, "See Satele? That's proper respect right there."

The Padawan sighed, "Master, please. That was years ago… Besides, the meeting?"

"Right right," Ngani muttered, and motioned for Satele to follow him in. The elegant doors slid open and promptly slid shut, leaving Jack alone. The other guides had vanished and he was left in the hall by himself.

"Wow, talk about a lot of trust," Jack thought aloud. Still, having promised to cause no trouble, Jack crossed his arms and leaned against the nearest wall. And waited.

Satele followed her master inside and saw that he hadn't been lying. The Council assembled was only a fraction of the full twelve members. The only members she saw were her own master, Master Belth Allusis, several of the masters she didn't know as well, and Grand Master Zym, who also happened to be a Kel Dor.

Roughly half the chamber was empty, leading Satele to wonder where the other members of the Council were. Ngani sat in his seat next to Master Zym, and pressed the tips of his fingers together. He made a silent gesture for Satele to begin her report.

Satele gave a curt bow and began her report, "Masters of the Jedi High Council, I regret that I come bearing terrible news. Korriban has fallen, and the Sith Empire has returned once again."

There were shocked murmurs amongst the Council, several members leaning over and speaking to each other in hushed whispers. Belth and Kel conversed briefly before the Grand Master spoke in a low but gentle voice.

"The Sith have not been seen in over 300 years Padawan. Are you certain that this enemy was in fact, Sith?"

"Yes Master Zym." Satele replied without hesitation, "Master Kao Cen Darach and I engaged two Sith Warriors in our escape from Korriban. He ultimately chose to stay behind and sacrifice himself so that we might escape and warn the Republic."

The Council was silent at this, and the three Masters in particular looked deep in thought. Master Belth spoke, "Then it is as we feared. The reports are true."

Satele let her confusion show, "Reports master?"

Master Ngani pressed a small button on his chair. Satele backed away as the council room darkened and a holograph flickered to life before her. A single still shot emanated in the center, showing an entire Imperial Fleet in orbit of a green blue planet.

"Three weeks ago, the Republic received word of light skirmishes in the Tingel Arm and Aparo sector." Ngani began, "A small diplomatic convoy was deployed to resolve the conflict quickly and with minimal loss of life. This was the only image the convoy transmitted before they were completely destroyed."

Satele stared at the image with new found fear, worry, and a small bit of anger, "Why didn't the Republic respond to this in kind?" she demanded.

Master Zym raised a calming hand, "They were unsure of this new threat Padawan. They believed it to be nothing more than a small upstart faction stirring up trouble in the Outer Rim." his voice took a darker tone, "It brings me no pleasure to see this assumption is wrong."

"The Senate won't believe this." Ngani mentioned.

"They don't need to believe this," Master Belth replied, "They simply need to accept it. The Sith have returned, and in a force greater than we could have ever imagined. The entire Republic is at risk, and immediate action is necessary."

Master Zym raised his hands to calm them both, "You raise an excellent point, Master Belth. However, at the moment the best course of action would be to prepare the Jedi themselves, and to hear the rest of the Padawans report. Please continue Satele."

With that, Satele explained the rest of what happened. She briefly skimmed over Jack's sudden appearance and then moved onto Master Kao's capture of Nico Okarr before focusing on the arrival of the Sith. She explained their tactics and the confrontation with the two Sith Lords. She ended it explaining that Kao had stayed behind to by them time to escape, and that he had died in battle.

"We had sensed Kao's passing in the Force," Master Belth murmured, stroking his graying beard, "This is grave news indeed. Kao was one of our best and greatest, a staunch guardian of the Jedi Order and what it stood for."

Some of the Council members agreed while others seemed less convinced. It was a little known fact that Kao's black and white moral compass often brought him into conflict with some of the more grey Jedi within the Order. Some believed that was why he was assigned to such a dead end post like Korriban. Satele personally believed the Zabrak had acted on his cisions of darkness instead, having a sense that was where it would arrive.

Unfortunately, he had been right.

"This however," said Master Ngani, "brings us to our next topic. The boy, Jackson."

Satele gave a slight bow of her head at this. Explaining the Sith was the easy part, explaining Jack would… be far more difficult.

"Satele, you said that Jackson is not from the known galaxy. How can this be?" one of the masters asked.

"That is something neither I nor Jack himself seems to know masters," Satele answered, "I do not even fully understand his theory on how he arrived on Korriban. Only he could explain it best."

"Then perhaps it would be best if we spoke to him personally," Belth mused, the Council nodding in agreement.

Satele took in a breath. Now came for the harder part, "There is one thing though, Masters. Jack is Force sensitive, Master Kao sensed it in him when he first met Jack. He wished to train him upon my completion of my final trial."

There were no outbursts of shock at this revelation, no whispered murmurings among the Council. No, instead they seemed to have actually expected this from the former Jedi master, something that really didn't surprise Satele as much as she thought it should have.

"Interesting," Master Zym stated, drumming his clawed fingers together.

After a moment, the Council members exchanged looks, before nodding, "Satele, you are dismissed, please send in Jack." Master Zym ordered.

Satele gave a short bow, and then turned to leave. Once she was gone, Master Zym looked at his comrades, "What do you think?" he asked them.

"I believe it would be best to meet him first." Ngani suggested, "From the brief moments I spoke with him, he seems like a respectful but easily distracted youth."

"I agree," Belth stated, " we must meet him before we can judge him."

Zym nodded and the Council turned their attention to the door.

Outside, Jack looked up from the floor when Satele exited the doors silently. She immediately looked at Jack and gestured to the door, "The Council wishes to speak with you."

Jack stood up from the wall and gave a silent nod. Satele stopped him before he could enter the chamber, "A word of advice. Be respectful and tell them everything. Leaving out details that seem irrelevant to you could be the difference between your acceptance or rejection from the Council."

"Got it, thanks." Jack said, and entered the chamber. It was a small circular room with twelve low chairs arranged in a semi circle. A window wrapped around the chamber, allowing him to see more of Coruscant. Little more than half of the Council occupied the chairs, and Jack noted several were human. A few were aliens, including a rather frightening fellow with a large grey mask over his mouth and grey goggles over his eyes that hid his pupils. He had orange red skin and his four fingered hand was clawed.

The frightening Jedi gave a small nod to Jack, "Greetings, young one," Jack noted that his voice was kind and patient, similar to Kao's, "My name is Grand Master Zym." Zym listed off several of the councilors for Jack, though he doubted he'd remember all their names for the moment.

"And you already know Master Ngani." Zym finished.

Jack gave a short and very awkward bow, "A pleasure to meet you all." he managed. Jack hated being the center of attention around those he didn't know. And he definitely didn't know the Jedi Council, that was assured.

"Please boy," Ngani almost laughed, "Loosen up. Any stiffer and you might break yourself."

"S-sorry," Jack apologized, letting out a nervous breath as he did. He didn't feel any looser, but his stance did lose some of its tenseness.

Ngani shrugged, "Not perfect, but it will do."

Master Belth gave him a look before looking on Jack, "Now, young one, Padawan Satele has explained to us that you are Force sensitive, is this true?"

This was the moment of truth for Jack. No turning back now.

He gave a short nod, "I think so sir. Satele told me I felt Master Kao's death, and when I was younger, things…happened around me that I couldn't explain."

This bit of information made the Jedi exchange looks, before Master Zym looked at Jack directly, "What are some examples?" he asked.

Jack thought for a moment, remembering back to those days so long ago, "Well… if I got angry, things would break. Nothing big, small things. Sometimes people would fall over like they'd been shoved. I always just chalked it up to bad coincidences. It stopped as I got older, so I kind of forgot about it."

Master Zym and the others began nodding while Jack explained this. It was as if they'd expected this, "Those who don't know of their Force sensitivity often find that their emotions can have unintended side effects for others. This tends to lead them to either suppressing their connection to the Force, or worse, falling to the Dark Side."

"I didn't know that." Jack admitted.

Ngani let out a chuckle, "Well, if what Satele told us about you, this isn't much of a surprise. Up until recently, I bet you hadn't even known about the Force."

Jack shook his head, "No sir, I didn't. In fact, a lot of this, the Republic, the Sith, all this technology… It's nothing but fiction where I come from," said the friend of the sentient transforming machines.

The masters nodded once again, while Belth's face turned into a look of questioning, "This world you're from. Could you explain your world to us?"

"I can try." Jack said. And from there he spent what felt like an eternity (He'd later learn it was a full hour) explaining what his world was like to the Jedi Council. Their tech, what little of the politics he knew, and of course, the bots. He explained the conflict, his involvement and how that had lead to him being transported to their world.

At first, the Council seemed shocked and almost disturbed that any group would involve children in their war. However, when Jack explained that the cons would have hunted them down to get at the bots, they seemed more accepting of it. And most of all, they seemed fascinated by Jack being chosen by Optimus to wield the Key to Vector Sigma.

The fact that Jack managed to succeed on his own with no combat training was a testament to his connection to the Force. It may be suppressed at the moment, but the Council could now see what Master Kao had seen. If properly trained, Jack would not only become a Jedi, but a powerful Jedi. Perhaps even capable of rivaling Satele.

Eventually, Jack finally stopped his explanation and took a minute to catch his breath. The Council was silent for several minutes after, almost as if speaking telepathically, (They weren't) and leaving Jack to feel rather tense over the whole scenario. This was a make or break time. He either got in, or he was rejected.

Master Zym lowered his hands into his lap and gave Jack one final look over before speaking, "Under normal circumstances Jack, the Jedi rarely take candidates of your age into training. By your age, you have formed too many emotional attachments. And for a non-Force user, this is fine. But Jedi must remain unattached from anyone or anything. This is why we rarely own more than our attire and lightsaber. The Order provides for us, and we use our knowledge of the Force to protect the innocent." Jack gave a slow nod to signal that he understood what the master said.

"However," Zym continued, "These are hardly normal circumstances. The Sith Empire has returned, and with it the entire Republic, trillions of lives, are at risk. We are willing to offer you a chance to train at the Order…"

Jack went a little wide eyed and felt his pulse quicken. This was it! He was going to get in!

"But…" Jacks short celebration promptly froze. But was a three letter word that often entailed things that ended poorly in his favor.

"We, the Council, must know… Do you believe your friends and family are looking for you, that they will find their way here?"

Jack blinked a few times, "O-of course! Why wouldn't they?" he knew they'd be looking for him… problem was, they had no idea where to look…

"We meant no harm child," Master Belth said softly, "We were simply asking."

"Yes, yes I think they're looking for me. And I think they will find me." Jack admitted.

"With that said," Master Zym continued, "I must ask, are you willing to commit? The training to become a Jedi is long and arduous. It could take you years to become a full Jedi Knight. Every day would be studying Jedi philosophies, practicing sword play, hours of meditation, and physical conditioning."

Jack gave a short nod, "Satele explained the trials I would face Master," now that time had passed, Jack was regaining his confidence, "I think I can do this. But I'll never know if I don't try."

Zym would have smiled if he could, "You are determined, this is good. However, I must ask you this. If your friends, if your family manages to find you, would you stay and complete your training, stay with the Jedi, or return to your family and leave your training unfinished?"

The answer seemed obvious to Jack as he opened his mouth to respond… and then froze, his throat going dry as the full implications of what Zym asked hit him. If his family did find him, Jack wouldn't be able to return home. He would stay here, spend years training and be forbidden from emotional attachment. Essentially, he'd be giving up his entire old life if he accepted Zyms author.

Jacks hesitation didn't go unnoticed by the Council, and Ngani spoke, "Know Jack that we do not wish to force this decision on you. It is a life changing choice. If you do not wish to join the Order, then we will not force you. Know that what you do from here on out is your choice. And that should you choose to become a Jedi, but you are found, we will allow you to interact with your family. To keep them away from you when they are undoubtedly worried and concerned would be…"

"Most unwise." Belth finished for him.

Ngani nodded in agreement with his companion, "Exactly. Just remember, the choice is yours."

Jack swallowed and took in a breath. This was his choice. A choice to learn, to grow, and unlock his potential. A chance to finally become more than just that kid from Jasper who happened to know aliens. There was a war coming, and from how the Jedi were acting, it was going to be big. How could he turn his back on that. Sure, the Autobot war was big too, but this was interplanetary… and if the war ended by the time they found him, maybe Jack could convince the Council to help end the Cybertronian war…

"I accept." Jack said, his voice shaky.

Ngani smiled, "Good to hear. We will discuss your training and decide what route to take for you. In the mean time though, you may wait outside Jack." the Councilors exchanged looks, "And send Satele back in. We wish to speak with her."

Giving a curt and less awkward bow, Jack left the room. The doors slid shut behind him, and Jack let out a tired sigh, "So?" Satele stood there, hands on her hips with an expectant look on her face.

"I'm in…" Jack murmured, "They accepted me into the Order."

A small smile crossed Satele's face, "That's great news. What else did they tell you?"

Jack blinked a few times as the whole situation sank in, "They're going to discuss my training, and want to talk to you again. Didn't say why."

Satele quirked her lips slightly before shrugging, "Alright, wait here…and don't cause any trouble."

"Why does everyone keep saying that?" Jack asked to no one in particular. He stood aside from the door and Satele re-entered the Council Chamber.

"Satele."

"Masters." she bowed, "You wished to speak with me?"

Master Zym stood and crossed his arms behind his back, "Yes. We wanted your opinion. With Master Kao's death, you are the only one who knows Jack to any degree. Do you believe he could become a Jedi?"

Satele hid her confusion. It seemed an odd question to ask, but she decided to simply nod, "Yes, yes I do. He lacks confidence in himself, but there is strength in him. I think he could become a Jedi."

"There's something else," her master said, standing to join Master Zym, "Something you're not telling us Satele."

Satele suddenly became very interested in her feet at this accusation. Being called a liar by the Jedi Council was not something to take lightly…

"Satele, what is on your mind?"

The young woman took in a breath, "I wish to train Jack, in order to fulfill Master Kao's wishes. I trained under him, and know many of his methods."

Dead silence followed this. No Councilor spoke, and at least two of them looked at her with a hint of shock that she'd dare to suggest that she do such a thing. Master Zym and his two friends however…

"Satele, to do this, you know you would need one more trial to pass." he reminded her.

Satele bowed her head, "The Trial of Spirit."

"You've attempted it once before and failed. Do you believe you could pass it in a second attempt?"

The Padawan looked back up with a determined look in her eye, "I believe in trying. And I believe I am ready to take the Trial."

She didn't see it, but Ngani wore a proud expression on his face, hidden in his eyes. Master Zym nodded and crossed his arms, "Very well Padawan. Should you pass the Trial of Spirit, you're request will be answered. You will train Jack, with proper guidance of course."

Satele gave a bow, "Thank you masters."

"Don't thank us yet." Belth warned, "You know the Trial of Spirit is the one Trial most initiates fail. You will delve within and face your darkest demons. And if you fail, you may be left permanently scarred."

"I know masters," Satele said solemnly, "And like I said. I'm ready."

**A/: So so so so so so so sorry guys! This week was a chaotic MESS! Anyone who lives in California ought to know we had about a half dozen fires going on, which lead to chaos at school, which added with the AP tests being rescheduled… I'm amazed I got this chapter done at all. But hey, longer chapter for you guys, and next chapter we see Satele complete her Trial of Spirit. Will she succeed and become a Jedi Knight, with Jack as her Padawan? Or will she fail and be left scarred for life? Tune in next time to find out! Also, remember to review and PM, especially with ideas or questions. And one last thing, the Poll is being shut down. Unsurprisingly, pairings won, so watch out for a potential pairing in the future. Anyway, bye!**


	9. Chapter 8

Chapter 8: Spirit

_Jedi Temple…_

Shortly after their conference with the Padawan, Satele left the council chambers, leaving the High Council to their own thoughts. Many of the councilors were confused by the verdict the Grand Master had made. Giving this new older force sensitive as a Padawan to a Padawan herself? It seemed like something out of a bad holo-video.

"I am aware of your reservations," Master Zym stood from his chair, along with Master Ngani and Belth, "Rest assured that this decision is for the best."

One of the councilors spoke up, "Grand Master Zym, I beg your pardon, but this is a very risky decision. Satele is still a Padawan, young and susceptible to the Dark Side. Jack is older and lacks Jedi training than any normal Padawan. Why allow her to train him when many Jedi spend years of training as a knight before taking a Padawan?"

The Grand Master crossed his arms together, "Because I believe it would be best for both Jack and Satele."

"What?"

"Satele is still grieving over the lost of Battlemaster Kao," Zym explained, "And this grieving could lead her onto the path to the Dark Side. However, I believe that training Jack would help her stay focused on something besides her masters death. Give her a task to distract her from her grief."

The councilors exchanged looks, "Master, that is all said and good, but why Jack? Why not one of the other Padawans? Ones that have already been trained, instead of giving her such an extreme challenge."

Zym frowned behind his mask, "Because Satele's bloodline excels at accomplishing the impossible. Need I remind you of her ancestor Bastila Shan's accomplishments?"

A few councilors looked away. Apparently he did need to remind them, "Bastila did the impossible. This lone barely knighted Jedi not only captured the dreaded Sith Lord Darth Revan, but she managed to retrain him in the ways of the Jedi and restore balance to the force with the destruction of Darth Malak."

"Yes, " One of the councilors started, "But she herself fell to the Dark Side for a time, and fell in love with Revan. Shan's line ever since has advocated that attachment is necessary for the Jedi."

"Yet Satele has not." Ngani shot back, a stern look on his face, "You search for but a few blemishes in a sea of incredible accomplishments. If anyone could train a person like Jack, than it would be my Padawan."

The councilors looked amongst themselves, "If you truly believe this is the wisest course of action Masters, we will agree with you. But if this fails, you will have no one to blame but yourself."

Zym gave a curt nod, "I would expect nothing less." he replied. But both he, and Ngina knew for a fact that once Satele passed her Trial of Spirit, she would train Jack. And she would not fail…

_Later that Night…_

Night had fallen over Coruscant. But even in the clutches of darkness, the city-planet _never _slept. The city was instead a sea of glowing light flowing over the landscape from horizon to horizon. The skies were still busy with the hustle and bustle of speeders flitting from one area to another. It was an impressive sight to say the least.

But the Jedi Temple was an exception to this stunning visual. While a few lights dotted the surface of the mighty structure, most of the temple was quite inactive. This of course was due to the fact that most Jedi were either asleep or in their quarters meditating and/or studying. All but a handful that is. And one was making her way to the center spire that rose from the temple.

Satele gently and silently glided across the halls, dressed in simpler robes instead of her battle armor she preferred. Given that she was undertaking the Trial of Spirit, her armor would be the worst attire she could have worn. She wouldn't need it with what she was doing.

Satele felt her heart beating in her chest as she entered the lift to the top of the spire. She'd undertaken the Trial of Spirit once before. Yet she could barely remember what had transpired. Only extreme pain and fear engulfing her body for several hours.

She played with her hands as the lift ascended. Realizing this was getting her nowhere, Satele pressed her hands together and took in a deep breath. Her pulse slowed slightly, and the young Padawan began to repeat the Jedi Code.

"There is no emotion, there is peace." she started, "There is no ignorance, there is knowledge. There is no passion, there is serenity. There is no chaos, there is harmony. There is no death, there is the Force."

Over and over she repeated these lines, murmuring them quietly and in a peaceful tone. And as she did, her pulse slowed and the sharp burning feeling of anxiety in her chest died down to a certain degree. It was still there, but to a much lesser and more controllable extent than previously.

Still she continued the lines, even as the lift doors slid open, "There is no death…"

"There is only the Force." Master Ngani finished.

Satele's head shot up from its bowed position, and she saw her master standing in front of the lift with a small smile on his face. A surprised expression crossed her face, making him chuckle, "Don't act so surprised. I might be old, but I'm still your master. And as such, I'll be overseeing your trial."

Smiling, Satele nodded and followed the man into the room. The center spire consisted of a single room designed for one purpose. For deep meditation. It was up here and in this room that no sound could enter from the outside room. No light could cause disturbances. Only the masters of the Jedi Order used this room on a regular basis.

Masters of the Jedi Order, and those undertaking the Trial of Spirit that is. The entire room was almost completely engulfed in darkness. Only a circle of cloaked Jedi could be seen standing in the center of the room, their lightsaber's extended and held in front of their shadowed faces. The only sound besides the footsteps of Ngani and Satele as they entered, was a gentle hum from the rainbow collection of lightsabers, which barely illuminated the room in a variety of gentle hues ranging from blue, to green, to purple, or even gold.

The circle was missing two people. One on the side the two Jedi were approaching from, and the other on the opposite end. Satele and Ngani passed through the first opening, and Ngani took his place in the second. He motioned for Satele to sit in the middle of the circle of Jedi while he pulled up his own hood and unsheathed his blue saber.

Satele slowly rested on her knees, a position that would be considered uncomfortable to most but she'd grown used to over the years of training. The position came to her as naturally as breathing did honestly.

Once she was settled, she looked up at her master. He spoke in a cool even tone, "This, is your final Trial Satele Shan. Once you have undertaken it, you will be a true Jedi. If you pass that is." his voice echoed over the chamber.

"Are you ready?" he asked her. Satele gave a short and curt nod.

Ngani nodded and his hooded head looked to his fellow Jedi. A low chant followed that. The words were an ancient Jedi chant, the original language long since forgotten. They were simple and elegant words, yet they held an immense weight behind them. They felt ancient, and rose from many ranges. From a high crashing clamor, to a low booming groan, the chant rose and fell ever faster.

Satele rested her hands on her knees and shut her eyes, breathing in gently. For several minutes this was all that occurred for the Padawan and the masters. But then, things began to change. The room grew darker, the light from her fellow Jedi's sabers slowly fading. In a matter of minutes, they were extinguished, leaving Satele in darkness.

Her eyes shot open to see this never ending darkness. But something else had changed. Her robes were gone, replaced with her battle armor once again. She felt a familiar weight on her waist. Her lightsaber!

Reaching down, Satele picked it off her waist and slowly stood. The blade hissed to life, illuminating the area around her. And then reflecting off a shining surface, nearly blinding the young woman. She narrowed her eyes and saw that it was a mirror. In fact, where all the Jedi had once stood, there were dozens of mirrors surrounding her, all showing her a reflection of herself.

"What…?" she turned in a circle, staring at her reflections, which stared back at her. The Trial of Spirit required a deep spiritual journey within one's self… But this seemed a bit too literal…

_"What's the matter? Don't like what you see?" _a disturbingly familiar voice said from behind Satele.

The Padawan whirled around to face her reflection again. It mirrored her movements, and seemed the same as the others. Satele raised her saber, and her reflection did the same. She frowned, and her reflection smiled. Satele went wide eyed and stumbled away from the mirror. The reflection lowered its saber and pressed its hands to the mirror.

At first, nothing happened. The mirror image pushed harder, and the wall that divided them parted like gel. The mirror widened large enough for Satele's reflection to step through, looking far different than before. Her skin had grown pale as snow, her hair unkempt, her armor pitch black, and her eyes a sickly yellow with red wrapped outlining the edge of its irises.

She spun the hilt of her saber and held it vertical. Two crimson blades snaked out from either end, a sickening hum filled the air. Satele readied her own double edged blade, knowing full well what was about to occur.

The two mirrored each other, slowly circling the other. Satele spun her blade from her right side to her left. Her reflection spun it's blade from its right to its left side. Satele narrowed her eyes, and her clone did the same. A literal mirror reflection. Go figure.

Satele thrust her blade out at the clone, only for it to do the same. She dodged to the side, and her reflection did the same, avoiding the blade as well. Satele frowned and was mirrored by the clone.

_'It imitates all my movements, knows all my techniques… How do I hurt it...?'_ she wondered.

Her answer came when the two exchanged a flurry of blows. Neither one landed a blow on the other, only managing to block their blows. But while they fought, she felt whisperings of doubt in the back of her mind.

_'Weak…'_

_'Powerless…'_

_'Our fault…'_

She clenched her eyes and shoved the reflection back. Her clones saber hit the nearest mirror, slashing into it and shattering it. Her clone staggered as if hit, and grasped at her arm. Steam rose from her bicep, and when she removed her pale hand, a visible cauterized wound easily stood out.

The gears in Satele's mind clicked and she smiled at her clone. The voices suddenly began to die down. The clone smiled too, and followed Satele's lead. She walked over to the nearest mirror and thrust her saber into it. The clone did the same, and screamed. A burning hole was burned through its midsection, smoke curling up from the wound.

The clone shattered and faded away, along with the rest of the mirrors. Satele sheathed her blade and hooked it on her waist, "Well that was simple enough," she said, "No idea why I failed the first time. The mirror clone is incredibly cliché-"

The room suddenly began lighting up, but not with the gentle glow of lightsabers. No, instead it was the glow of torches along the outskirts of a larger cavern.

Roughly twice the size of the spire on the temple, the caverns ceiling was invisible to her eye. A large ramp lead up to a stone platform where a shrine of sorts could be seen, illuminated by two large silver braziers. Purple fire flickered in them and Satele shivered.

The entire cavern had an unnatural feel to it. A dark feel to it, the same feeling she had felt when the Sith invaded Korriban. The Dark Side infested this place, every inch. And it made her skin crawl as she shuddered.

She unsheathed her lightsaber once again and looked around the cavern. There was no exit. Only the ramp up. Deciding there was no other way to go, Satele walked up the ramp to the shrine that had been built. But as she approached, she noticed something else. A robed figure kneeling at the altar, resting on their knees.

Satele frowned as she slowly approached, "Another mirror clone? Really?"

The robed figured raised a hand and Satele stopped (Though she didn't know why). She noticed that the figures hand was clad in thick gauntlets, with long flowing robes stopping at the crook of his elbow. The arm was thicker than hers, even without the armor, and being closer Satele could see that the figure bore the shape of a male.

She narrowed her eyes and crouched down, "Who are you?" she demanded of the figure.

The purple flames flickered brightly in their braziers as the figure slowly lowered his hand. Without a word, the figure slowly stood to his feet, heavy boots thudding on the ground. He then gradually turned to face Satele. As his face came into view, Satele felt her eyes go wide.

This man had no face, none she could see anyway. Instead, he wore an ancient Mandalorian mask. A single pitch black visor cut across his face horizontally. The center was colored red, with two grey areas curving into it from either side. An old design indeed, centuries old…

Thick body armor was strapped to the figures body, all of it heavily worn and scarred. The armor of a veteran warrior. But the most obvious and worrisome feature were the two lightsabers that seemed to just appear in his hands. The figure activated them, and the two sabers hissed to life. One a crimson red, the other a disturbing shade of violet.

Satele felt a trickle of fear shoot up her spine. For she now knew who this figure was. Any Jedi would. After all, he was taught to all Jedi as a precautionary tale of how good intentions could have negative consequences, and how redemption was possible for all.

The figure before her, was Darth Revan, Dark Lord of the Sith… and her ancestor.

He raised his twin blades, and fell into combat form Jar'Kai, the form used by a dual wieldist. Satele spun her own blade once and readied herself. This was no Jedi she was facing. This was one of the greatest enemies of the Republic, not the redeemed Jedi that saved the Republic. There was no mercy here…

The two stood apart, their blades held at the ready while they stared each other down. Satele wasn't sure what the Sith Lord was planning, until he suddenly dashed forward. He began spinning in place, slashing his lightsabers in a downward diagonal sloping angle. Satele beat back each blow, but it was as if trying to fight back a tidal wave.

Revan slashed down once more and then thrust up. Satele blocked the first blade, and twisted her saber to deflect the second blow. She twisted around Revan and stabbed at his back. The Sith blocked the blow with a saber behind the back, and then flicked his wrist. Satele's grip was shifted, and the Sith slammed his elbow into her face.

"Gagh!" she yelped and stumbled back.

The Sith turned on his feet and shot his leg up into her stomach, knocking the wind out of her. She gasped for breath and went wide eyed before Revan then unleashed a bolt of Force Lightning into the poor young woman. Her entire body began to burn and she screamed in pain.

But this was not the end of her pain. Revan shot a Force blast at her, knocking the young woman across the platform and into the Altar with an echoing crash. Bits of stone went everywhere, and she slumped in her newly formed crater, before falling to the floor on her hands and knees.

She struggled to breath and regain her control, but that fear had skyrocketed in their short fight. Revan handled her like she was nothing. All her Jedi training meant nothing when facing him and the dark side. Maybe that was…

Maybe her mind was telling her something. The Sith were too powerful to face one on one. But with power to match…

Satele shook her head in disgust. What was she thinking!? She was a Jedi, not a Sith. Defending the weak and protecting the innocent was her duty! Not to seek power and control. The Dark Side was nothing to her, nothing but pain and suffering.

Revan slowly strolled over to the young Padawan, sheathing his violet blade. He stopped as he stood over her and raised his crimson blade to his black visor at a horizontal angle. His grip tightened on the saber, and he thrust forward, aiming for Satele's heart.

However, Satele had gathered herself by now. And with that, employed the Tutaminis technique. A form of technique that employed the Force to absorb energy. And since lightsabers were just that, energy, the blade stopped dead in her hand. The blade sparked and hissed as it was stopped, but it moved no further.

The two warriors were stuck like that for a moment, Satele struggling to hold back the blade, while Revan slowly shoved it forward. Satele couldn't hold it for long, but she didn't need to.

The young woman gazed at her ancestor were his eyes would be, the black visor, and narrowed her eyes, "You're not Revan." she declared through grit teeth.

No response.

"And I will never sink to your level." she added with a hiss. Those two phrases combined seemed to be the magic phrase. Revan stumbled back as if hit, and Satele held out her hand to the side, calling with the Force. Her saber flew into her hand and activated a single blade.

She charged forward as Darth Revan began to recover. He managed a clumsy parry of her first strike, but Satele simply used her momentum to redirect his blade up. She then twisted on her heel and activated the second blade, feeling and hearing it impale him through the abdomen. There was a strangled gasp and she heard something clatter to the floor.

A small smile crossed her face, and her lightsaber dissolved away. The entire room darkened for a brief moment, before a rainbow of colors lightened it, and the faint sound of chanting could be heard.

Satele opened her eyes and found herself back in the center spire, amongst her fellow Jedi. They were still cloaked, including her master. But now that she had ended her meditation (Without screaming like a madwoman) Ngani stepped forward, lowering his lightsaber to his side.

"You have undertaken the Trial of Spirit and faced the deepest pits of your darkness Satele." he stated aloud.

Satele bowed her head as her master spoke, "Your final trial is complete. You are no longer Padawan Satele Shan…"

There was a flash of blue, and the distinct smell of burning hair. The bun at the base of Satele's skull fell to the ground and her hair fell free of its confines. She'd need to redo it later when she had the chance. A new style, something that wasn't so similar to her Padawan bun.

Ngani motioned for her to rise, "You are now Jedi Knight Satele Shan." he announced proudly, "And may you carry the will of the Force proudly and honorably!"

The many Jedi cheered in agreement, and light slowly poured into the spire. Lightsabers were sheathed as the newly knighted Jedi stood and was congratulated by her comrades. The Jedi could be serious at times, but given recent events, a small celebration was needed.

In the middle of all the fuss though, Ngani put a hand on Satele's shoulder and smiled at her, "Ya did good kid. I'm proud of you."

Satele gave a curt nod, "Thank you, Master Ngani. I wouldn't have made it without you."

The man smiled, "You have no idea kid." he put an arm around her shoulder, "Now, let's start discussing how you're going to train your new Padawan…"

_The Following Morning…_

Jack readjusted his new robes as he walked down the hall to the private training room where he was to meet his new 'master'. After speaking with the Council the day before, he'd been sent to the medical bay where they made sure he had no other injuries Satele had missed. They found that he simply needed to avoid strenuous activity for the next few days to let his shoulder heal, and then he'd be fine.

From there, the teen had been taken to his new quarters. They were simple Spartan quarters, with a bed, dresser, nightstand, and a single meditation pad at the base of the bed. Jack had also found new robes laid out for him and that very morning had dawned them.

He'd been directed by one of the Temple Guards to his training room, and was on his way now. All the while though, he felt a twinge of worry. Kao had intended to train him, and Jack wished the Zabrak had survived. He'd feel far more comfortable if he was trained by someone he knew, instead of a random Jedi master, but…

Well, beggar's can't be choosers. At least, that's what he thought as he reached the room and the doors slid open. The training room was small and simple, with a tan mat in the center of the room, along with several meditation pads dotting the outskirts.

However, resting in the center of the mat on her knees, was Satele. Obviously deep in meditation. Jack paused at the door, a bit confused by what he saw, "Um…" he unintentionally said aloud.

Satele's eyes opened and she looked up at Jack with a smile, "Good, you arrived on time." she got to her feet and crossed her arms.

"Well, let's begin, shall we?"

**A/N: Sorry if the ending felt rushed guys, I might come back and re-edit it later, so watch out for that. Now, with that said, I have an announcement to make. Those of you reading my story, Energy Equals Mass already know about this, but…**

**I am hosting my very own Original Character Tournament. Now what caused this you may ask? Well, basically, it was inspired by the many Original Character Tournaments on DeviantArt, and is called The Calling. The Calling is the first ever OCT on . For those unfamiliar with the concept of an OCT, it is as follows. A group of judges assemble a basic concept for a tournament between artists or writers where their original characters will engage in combat. **

**A basic plot and setting is hammered out, and during/following this, auditions are held. Auditioners are expected to create a character, a reference sheet for said character, and an audition to introduce the character and explain why they've become involved in the tournament.**

**In this case, the sheet does not need to be illustrated, only contain the details of their character, i.e. physical appearance, strengths, weaknesses, weapons, personality, and back story. The Audition itself will be a one chapter event (Minimum of 3,000 words required) where the author writes how their OC wound up on Station S-6-S. If accepted, the author will then post their audition as a new story in its respective genre (If the characters from TFP, then it goes in the TF section, and so on). **

**Once the judges have filled all slots in the tournament, auditions are closed, and the actual tournament will begin. Characters will be matched up based on a judge decision, and the writers have until the first round deadline to create an entry for the first round. The process continues until one author is left standing. This Authors story line will become the official canon of the Calling. Prizes are still in debate.**

**Now, I already have several people trying to enter in as entrees. There's a total of fifteen spots still open, and two spots on the judges panel. If ANYONE is interested, check out my profile for a list of rules, or PM me with questions that might not be answered on my profile. I will happily answer them.**

**With that all said, I hope you guys enjoyed the chapter, and I look forward to seeing your thoughts on this OCT. Remember to review or Pm, and bye!**


	10. Chapter 9

Chapter 9: Training

_Jasper High, Two Weeks After the Incident…_

Two weeks was too long. It was insufferable, unbearable, nothing but agonizing pain. Miko let out a tired sigh and rubbed her face. Suppressing a tired sob, Miko readjusted her backpack and began walking towards the school exit. Two weeks since Jack had been lost, and there was no sign of the teenager.

The bots had searched high and low for him, but they were making no progress. Neither was Raf, it seemed as though Jack had just vanished from the face of the Earth, lost somewhere where'd they never find him.

_'Or worse…'_ Miko clenched her eyes and shook her head, _'No…he can't be dead…' _

Jack was way too stubborn to die in such a pathetic way. At least in Miko's mind. Whether she would admit it or not, the girl did respect Jack for many things. Most of all, for his cool head and ability to take charge when the situation demanded it. She refused to believe that a ground bridge malfunction could take him out like that.

And that was why the last two weeks had been so hard on her, like they had everyone else. Jack didn't deserve to go out that way. The idea that he had died somewhere alone and cold though put Miko on edge. It had made her tense ever sense the incident, but had another effect she didn't notice.

Miko was becoming responsible. All her homework was done on time, she'd not been sent to the principal's office once, and her grades were steadily rising. Why was this? Because school was in the way, and getting detention for bad grades or misbehaving would distract her from looking for Jack. So she spent her free time finishing all her work and then the rest helping Raf look for Jack.

What did she have to show for this dedication? Nothing. Nothing at all. Only a feeling of hopelessness slowly overwhelming the young girl. A feeling that not even the sight of her green guardian on the front grass could help ease.

School was over now, and Miko was heading back to base with Raf, who was waiting at the bottom of the stairs. He sent her a small smile as she walked down the steps and met up with him. The two were silent for a moment, neither having much to say. This was becoming a standard thing for them. Normally the three of them met up there, but without Jack…

"So…any luck?" Miko asked, not hiding her hopefulness.

Raf looked away, "Nothing. Still nothing…"

"We look and look and look and still nothing…" he sighed, readjusting his glasses.

"We'll find him." Miko stated confidently, "It might take some time, but we'll find him."

Raf looked up at his friend confused, "How can you be so sure?"

Miko shrugged, "I think Mrs. Darby's attitude is rubbing off on me…" she admitted. June seemed awfully cheery all things considered. She was of course worried, and that sometimes showed, but she also was also the one least affected by Jacks disappearance. All because she claimed she could 'sense' that Jack was still alive. A sense Miko wished she really had.

The 'talk' Raf and Miko were having was suddenly interrupted when they heard a familiar voice, "Hey, Nakadai." Vince called.

A scowl formed on Miko's face, "What do you want Vince?" she demanded. She was _not _in the mood for the bully's antics.

The red head approached the two and stopped a safe distance out of Miko's kicking range, "Look, I'm not here to bug you," he started.

"Fat chance." Miko snorted, interrupting him.

Vince scowled at her, "Listen, Nakadai." he growled, before he took a more solemn expression, "I just wanted to say, sorry about Jack."

Miko blinked and was practically frozen in place, "What?"

"About how Darby vanished," he explained, "I'm sorry about that. And I hope you guys find him."

And with that, the bully turned to leave. He got five feet before Miko called out to him, "Wait, Vince!"

The bully stopped and turned around. Miko looked at him suspiciously, "Why would you apologize for our loss? You _hated _Jack." she and Raf both remembered how Vince and Jack interacted. The two were as rivals in every sense of the word, fighting over girls, bragging rights, and just fighting in general. So why apologize?

A small smile crossed Vince's face, "You think you're the only one whose lost a friend Miko? It's tough, and can take a toll on you…"

Miko's suspicious look faded as the bully walked away from them, leaving her to feel like a bit of a jerk herself. Raf watched Vince go also, before looking up at Miko and tugging on her sleeve.

"Hmm?"

"We should go…" Raf said, jerking a thumb to the Autobots.

Miko looked at her guardian waiting for her and gave a small tired smile, "Yeah, let's go…"

_Jedi Temple, Coruscant…_

Jack let out a tired gasp as he collapsed in his room. His head swam while he just lay on his bed. Every part of his body hurt, from his head down to his toes, it was all sore. His bruises were healed by this point, and the dislocation of his shoulder was but a faint memory, but Jedi training was exhausting!

For a full _month_ it was nothing but physical training for him from Satele. Not lightsaber training, no that would be interesting! No, it was working out to the fullest extreme in every sense of the word. Condition, fitness, all of it! Just to get him into the standard physical standard a Padawan his age would be at.

And then to add to that torture, he had to study multiple Jedi philosophical literatures while still learning Galactic Standard! Hence the head swimming. Put in very simple terms, Jack was half dead at this point honestly.

He rolled over onto his back, ignoring the protest of his sore body, and let out a tired and very un-Jedi like groan, "Ow…" he moaned.

Having Satele as his master had at first seemed like a blessing to Jack. He knew her and considered them friends. But when it came to training, that friendship seemed to go out the window. It's not that she went full drill sergeant on him (Thank god!) but she was strict and un-wielding, like a curtain of iron.

"What…have I gotten myself…into?" he wheezed. Thinking back, Jack remembered that while the training had been hard at first, he was able to handle it. Only recently had things changed, and thinking on it, he was pretty sure he knew why.

Jack's connection to the Force was still blocked off. Sure, he got small bits of it every once in a while, but he just couldn't form that connection! And this was likely why his training had gotten harder. Satele knew his connection was non-existent. The end of the first week she'd had him try to levitate a small ball of metal, no wider than his thumb. It wasn't anything specific, she'd not expected him to lift it…

But after six straight hours of meditating and attempting to move the ball, nothing happened. Literally. There was no sense of the Force flowing through him, no wobbling of the ball, nothing! Satele had said nothing, only scooped it up and let him go to his room to rest for the day. And that was the worst part. Though it had only been a month, Jack already wanted to earn her approval.

He knew he could do more, he could feel it bubbling beneath him. A pool of power waiting for its release. There just so happened to be a wall between the pool and the real world. And every time he failed to break that wall down, he could see the disappointment in Satele's eyes. It wasn't long or hurtful, just… It felt like he was wasting her time.

Jack sat up, rubbing his sore muscles. So, realizing his connection was weak, she'd decided to focus on physical and spiritual training instead. And the results were astounding. Jack wasn't fat by any means, but there was always a little extra fat on him. He wasn't an athlete, so much of his build was either natural muscle, bone, or a little fat. Not much else.

Groaning, Jack pulled the upper half of his Padawan robes off, letting the cold air cool his body down. He looked himself over, "Well…at least… the practice is paying off…" he wheezed. Time with the bots had started what Satele's training had decided to finish. His entire body was starting to be covered in muscle. It wasn't much, but he could see the starts of it…

Obviously he felt it for sure. Good god he felt it.

Jack rubbed his face, "What am I going to do?" he muttered. If he couldn't connect to the Force, then he couldn't become a Jedi. And that was just too much for the teen.

He let his hands drop and looked over at one of many scattered data-pads on his bed, "Maybe there's something here that'll help…"

Jack began looking them over, hoping against hope that something in the pads would help him. Little did he know that elsewhere in the temple, his master was exploring the Jedi Archives, hoping for something quite similar.

* * *

Satele casually walked through the archive, hands behind her back, looking for records of some sort to help her. Training Jack was proving to be both easier and more difficult than she'd imagined. He was more than happy to obey her, but the fact that he was making no progress on establishing a connection to the Force was becoming problematic.

She could accept the first few times he would fail. He was 16 and had subconsciously blocked his connection to the Force. So it was a given that he would have trouble starting. But after a month of repeated failures, it was starting to weigh on the young woman.

Hence why she had come to the Archive. She hoped that there was some record from the ancient Jedi that might help her in training such an exceptional student. Problem was, if there were, she couldn't find them. And she'd spent a good hour so far searching, even skimming through records written by her ancestor Bastila Shan. But her ancestor had written very little on her work concerning Revan's training to become a Jedi once more.

So of course, this had left Satele a little frustrated. Enough that she had to take a seat in the many tables in the center of the Archives, where she was taking a break from searching for the moment. It had been a long day, and the Jedi's patience was growing thin.

This lead to her being a touch rude when a shadow fell over her, "I am not in the mood for talking at the moment. Please leave me be and ask someone else to assist you."

"Well that's no way to treat your former master, now is it Satele?" Ngani asked.

The Knight's head shot up and whipped around to see her master standing there with his arms crossed and a somewhat concerned look on his face, "Master! I'm sorry, it's just-"

Ngani raised a hand, "Save it," he told her, "You're exhausted, trust me I understand. Your first few days under my tutelage were exhausting too."

Satele smiled faintly while her former master dragged up a chair and sat in it across from her, "So, Jedi Knight Satele Shan, what has brought you to the Archives in such a foul mood?" he asked.

Satele's smile faded and she sighed, rubbing her temples, "If you need to know master, it's my Padawan."

"Oh?" Ngani chuckled, "Bit off a little more than we could chew, did we?"

The look Satele gave him could have killed, "Don't give me that look Satele. I was only kidding." the Jedi said in a more serious tone.

He leaned forward in his chair with his fingers pressed together, "So, what exactly is the problem? From what I've seen, he's a very obedient student, even when you run him ragged."

"I don't-" Ngani fixed her with a look.

Satele's paused, "…Point taken." she admitted.

"Exactly." the Jedi Master smiled for a brief moment, "So what's the problem?"

Satele sighed and slumped in her chair, "Jack is a very obedient student, and I know he's trying as hard as he can. It's obvious. But his connection to the Force is nonexistent. Every exercise I've tried with him has ended in failure."

"Ah," Ngani rubbed his chin, "You're disappointed in him, is that it?"

"What?" Satele straightened up, "No, not at all. I'm disappointed in myself."

A small smile crossed Ngani's face as Satele spoke, "I feel like I'm failing him. Every time he fails, it feels as though I've failed. That I haven't taught him well enough. It's why I'm here. I was hoping to find an entry that might help me help Jack connect to the Force."

With her confession out in the open, Satele silently waited for Ngani's response. The master was an enigma amongst the Jedi order. He was as unorthodox as they came. He could be calm and collected, yet crack a joke whenever he wanted. He could be angry and yell down an idiotic politician, or he could be all three. So she had no idea what he might say.

Finally, after a few moments, he spoke, "I think you've learned one of the hardest things about teaching, Satele."

The young woman blinked in surprise, "Master?" that wasn't the answer she'd been expecting.

Ngani smiled as he spoke, "Every victory a Padawan achieves is your own. Every failure they suffer is your own. And no matter what you do, that will be your responsibility to bear. Training a Padawan is not easy. Especially one like Jack."

"Yes, but-"

"Let me finish," Ngani interrupted her, "And with Jack, only one thing is required. Patience."

Satele remained silent, listening to the master speak, "Jack is in a new world, and a new life unfamiliar to him. He has many emotional attachments to let go. It could be many months before progress is made. You need to be patient with him. Continue to train him in the ways of the Jedi and he will eventually blossom."

The logic was sound and Satele saw no flaws in it, but…

"How can you be so sure master?" she asked.

Ngani stood up from his chair, pushing it back into place, "I applied the philosophy _many _times while training you, Satele." the look on her face made Ngani laugh as he left the Archives and by extension Satele to herself with her thoughts.

* * *

Back with Jack, the teen had ignored the protests of his muscles, and after a quick (And much needed) shower, had exited his quarters to investigate the Archives. He'd been sent there a few times by his master to study, a process that nearly pulled him to sleep, and knew the location by heart.

The only issue was that the Archives were a long walk away, and Jack was incredibly sore still. He tried ignoring the pain the best he could, but that day in particular had been excruciatingly painful. It would be a long time before he stopped hurting like he did at that moment.

Still, he persevered and continued on through the halls, barely taking note of them. The halls had once caught his attention and he found it hard not to stare at them in awe. But after living there for a month, Jack had just grown used to them. They no longer captivated him like they used to.

However, what did catch his note was the fact that one of the larger holo-terminals, used to broadcast happenings in the Republic to the Temple, was being crowded by a large number of Jedi, Master, Knight, and Padawan alike.

Curiosity peaked, Jack decided to see what all the fuss was about. So he walked on over, only to find the crowd of Jedi, while not a wild uncontrolled crowd, was captivated by what they saw. Jack frowned and scowled as he tried standing on his toes to see what all the fuss was about.

"You'd think they'd be better spaced apart." he muttered to himself.

"It's not their fault, Padawan," Jack turned to see one of the Council members, Jedi Master Belth if he remembered correctly, standing next to him with his hands hidden in his robes.

"M-master," Jack said hurriedly, remembering how big a deal proper titles were amongst the Jedi. Those first few days of having it hammered into his thick skull were painful to say the least.

Belth returned the courtesy, "Padawan."

Jack looked from the master to the crowd, "So…what is the fuss all about?"

The Master followed his gaze and frowned, "The Republic has mobilized a war fleet to engage the Sith Empire in the Outer Rim."

"Wait, really?" Jack asked, a bit shocked, "It took them a month to do that?" it seemed like a hell of a delayed reaction to him.

Belth sighed, not at Jack, but at what he referred to, "Sadly, yes. Unlike the Jedi, the Republic does not, or rather, refuses to believe the Sith Empire has returned. Even this war fleet is nothing more than a small battle group. The Senate believes them to be nothing but upstarts."

Jack scowled, "That's ridiculous! What about the reports from Jace and my master?" he demanded, "I mean, she fought two Sith!"

"The Senate believes them to be fallen Jedi, not Sith." Belth seemed as upset by this as Jack, "But the Jedi do recognize the threat. We are mobilizing across the Outer Rim as we speak. It will take time and effort, but we will hold the line the best we can while the Republic struggles to form a true defense."

Jack wanted to say more on this matter, but Master Belth had nothing more to say on it. Instead, he wanted to focus on Jack, "Now, if I may ask Padawan, how has your training progressed?"

The teen hesitated for a moment, shame overwhelming him. It was one thing to admit to himself that his connection to the Force was nonexistent. But admitting it to a High Council member, one of the people who approved his training, felt like a betrayal to them almost.

"I don't intend to judge Padawan. I simply am curious." Belth said, noticing his hesitation.

Jack looked at the crowd of Jedi, somehow oblivious to a Council Member right behind them, and then motioned for Belth and him to move a small distance away. Belth did so and Jack scratched the back of his head, ignoring how weird it was to have his hair cut so short. But Jedi tradition and such.

"Truthfully Master Belth, I don't think I'll make it as a Jedi…" Jack admitted. Each word hurt for the teen to say, but he felt they were true. He couldn't connect to the Force, a Jedi's true weapon. Without it, he could never truly master a lightsaber, never become the great warriors like Belth or his master…

"Oh?" Belth said simply, "And why is that, Padawan?"

Jack clenched his hands open and closed, "I just… I can't… I can't connect to the Force, okay!" he hissed angrily, "I've tried and tried, but I just can't! I know it's there, I can feel it, but that's it! Every time I try and use it, I get nothing!"

He wanted to punch something bad. Belth frowned as the anger flowed off Jack. He raised a hand, "Calm yourself Padawan." he ordered, and took a deep breath.

Jack did the same and let it out as a heavy sigh. The anger faded somewhat, but not perfectly. Just enough to calm him down, "Now," Belth continued, "This was expected from some in the Council, myself included."

Shock plastered itself across Jack's face, "What? Then why accept me-"

"Because," Master Belth interrupted, "we sensed the potential for greatness in you. You are a very determined and intelligent young man Jack. I believe you could easily overcome this block, if you can learn one key thing."

"And that is?" Jack asked suspiciously.

"To let go. To release your hold on your worries, your connections, all of it. Due to your age, you'll hold an emotional attachment to many of your friends and family from your home. You must let these attachments go, lest they prevent you from continuing onwards. Or worse, lead you to the Dark Side."

Jack opened his mouth to protest such an action, but Belth continued, "You fear that if you unlock your connection that you will harm others again like you did many years ago. I can sense it on you. It is faint Jackson, but it is there. And I am not telling you that this will be easy either. Only a fool would think that a true connection to the Force could be established within a few days or weeks. An even greater fool would believe a competent Jedi could be trained at all within a few months, regardless of their potential or heritage."

"Well that was harsh." Jack muttered.

"It happened to a Padawan a few years ago. The poor soul was mercilessly killed." Belth sighed, "Believed he could take on a group of Mandalorian bounty hunters by himself. But my point is Jack, that you shouldn't be ashamed by this lack of connection. You have spent your entire life blocking the Force. It will take time to reestablish a connection."

Jack looked at the Jedi Master sadly, "And you're sure of this Master?" he asked.

Belth put a comforting hand on Jack's shoulder and smiled reassuringly, "Trust in your master, and in yourself Padawan. Release your attachments and the rest shall come. It is as the Jedi Code states, 'there is no chaos, there is harmony'. Your attachments and reservations cause chaos within your being. Only by achieving harmony within yourself can you connect with the Force. Do you understand?"

A smile crossed Jacks face, and he gave a small bow, "I think I do, Master Belth. Thank you."

The Jedi Master removed his hand and nodded, "I am glad to have helped young Padawan. Now, return to your quarters and rest. Given the regime Satele has put you on, you will need it."

Jack winced as a sore muscle flared up, "I think I like that idea. A lot. Guess the Jedi really are wiser beyond their years." he smiled.

Belth chuckled lightly and turned to leave, "For the most part. People just often misunderstand our meaning is all." he gave a wave goodbye, "May the Force be with you, Padawan." he said. And like that, he was gone, leaving Jack alone.

From there, Jack had decided to return to his quarters to think on what Master Belth had told him. The moment he returned to his room, he'd sighed and ran a hand through his hair, "This is… Could I even?"

Removing his attachments to his friends and family seemed impossible. There was simply too much history between them after all. It was hard not to get attached to someone. How could a Jedi do that, it wasn't natural!

The teen walked over to the meditation pad and sat cross legged. He preferred it to sitting on his knees, which he only did when he and Satele meditated together. He lacked the years of practice the other Jedi had, and found he could relax in that position just as well. Not perfectly mind you, but enough that he could meditate with…little issue.

Jack rested his hands in his laps and took a deep breath. Meditating wasn't something that came incredibly natural to the teen, but the few moments he attained it had helped him immensely in dealing with his loneliness and homesickness.

Now he hoped to use it to remove his attachments. Still an impossible task.

Still, he had to try. And so, Jack sat there, gently breathing in and out. He slowly repeated the Jedi Code (First day he'd been ordered to memorize it. He could recite it from heart now.) to help himself calm.

"There is no emotion, there is peace…There is no ignorance, there is knowledge… There is no passion, there is…serenity…" Jack took in another deep breath, and felt his body and mind begin to calm, "There is no chaos, there is harmony… There is no death. There is the Force."

His mind as empty as the mind of a teenager could be, Jack sat there and meditated. At first, the occasional random thought popped up to distract him, but the teen stayed with it, only focusing on what he wanted to focus on. Releasing his attachments.

But it wasn't possible! His mother had raised him for years by herself, and the two were friends too! How did he relinquish that? Same with the others, Miko, Raf, Arcee, Bulkhead, Bee, Ratchet, and Optimus! They were all such instrumental parts in his life, and they probably all thought he was dead! Heck, maybe they were dead!

How could he not be attached to them, not worry about them? They who had shaped his life so much, the people and bots that had changed his life for the better? The ones who had made him the person he was?

None of it seemed possible to Jack.

And then it hit him.

The key wasn't to stop caring about them… At least, that's how Jack saw it. Jedi _did _care, but about everything! Not individuals or loved ones, but every being. Be they evil or good, the Jedi cared. All life was sacred to them, because it was all connected to the Force. Taking a life was something they did as a last resort, and even then they hated to do so. But if lives were at risk, they would fight without hesitation!

Jack didn't need to get rid of his attachments, he needed to _expand _them. He needed to care for everyone, want to protect everyone the same way he did his friends and family! Sure, he wanted to protect innocents, but friends and family always came first. If he was to be a Jedi, he needed to protect everyone and everything equally.

It was such a simple concept, yet so complex… wait…

A new feeling rushed over Jack. It wasn't sickness or a feeling of happiness of pleasure. It was…different. It was a feeling of being part of something bigger. He could sense it, as if it were one large network. As if he were part of this one large network…connected…

Yes, this was it! He could feel the connection. That network, it was others connected to the Force. They were everywhere, surrounding them, infusing them. It was astounding! To think, his entire life he'd lived without this, refusing to let the Force flow through him…

Jack smiled as he meditated, and then slowly opened his eyes. The room was the same, but not how he viewed it. There was no way to describe it, but he just saw things differently. Instead of seeing a Spartan set of quarters, he saw a perfect room for him. Maybe that was part of the Jedi philosophy, but he felt like the room was perfect. It was close enough to other rooms that he could feel the Force emanating from its inhabitants.

Slowly, he got to his feet, "If this is how they see it…" he wondered aloud, "Then together, the Jedi must be…wow…"

They were a network of emotions, feelings, power… It wasn't a hive mind, but it was like a sixth sense. Jack could faintly feel the presence of a pair of Jedi walking outside his room. It wasn't great, but he could sense it…

Jack looked at his hands, slowly flexing them as a smile spread across his face. He looked to his datapads and inhaled deeply. He held his hand out at them and concentrated. Willed them to move, to rise from the bed. At first, nothing happened, nothing at all.

Then, it was as if a floodgate had been open. He felt the Force flow through him, and the datapads went shooting up into the ceiling, where two shattered and the others cracked.

Jack yelped and jumped backwards, not expecting that. Nor was he expecting the laugh from the doorway. His eyes quickly flicked to the door to see his master standing there, a proud expression on her face.

"Master!" his face flushed with embarrassment, and he bowed his head almost shamefully.

"How long were you…um…standing there?" he asked.

Satele raised a brow, "I was passing by to my quarters, when I felt a sudden shift in the Force, as if a new stream had formed." a proud smile showed itself on her face, "Well done Padawan." she praised.

Jack looked up at her, "I… thank you master."

Satele's smile suddenly took on a more sadistic nature, "And now you're _real _Training can begin."

A shiver shot up Jack's spine. Suddenly he felt very, very afraid of what was to come next. He had a feeling it would end poorly for him…

**A/N: Now, before you throw your pitchforks, let me explain. Jack's training is a small part of this story. I will be time skipping to the key moments in his training (First day learning to wield a lightsaber is next), and so time will be passing. I really hope you guys have no trouble with that, and that I didn't butcher Jedi training or the Force, if I did **_**please **_**let me know so I can edit the chapter accordingly. Now with that said, what did you guys think of the chapter? Good, bad, meh? Let me know. Also, let me know what I should update next, this story, Dark of the Night, or one of my other stories. Review and let me know.**

**Now, for the other news. Openings for the Original Character Tournament are still available, but the number has dropped to 15 official openings. There are roughly ten to eleven spots that may be filled by the end of this weekend, leaving five or four spots open. If you're interested in joining, contact me via PM with your audition, or questions. **

**With that said guys, remember to review and PM me, it's the only way I'll post more chapters! Bye!**


	11. Chapter 10

Chapter 10: Passing of Time

_Tingel Arm, Imperial Dreadnaught Maelstrom…_

His heavy boots echoed through the halls as he strode through the clean grey halls. His cloak blew out behind him as he walked, and his sickly eyes shot from side to side. Every officer gave a quick bow to him as he walked, followed by a briefly murmured, 'my lord'. But the newly promoted Lord Malgus paid no attention to these greetings.

He had a starship to command, a duty to perform for the Empire. With the death of his previous master, Lord Malgus had inherited his starship, the Maelstrom. A _Harrower-_class Dreadnaught, the Maelstrom was a massive starship, tailing at a length of 800 meters in length, and supplied with a compliment crew of 2,400 and could carry 7,300 troops.

It's hangars were filled with ninety five star fighters total, the majority of which were the standard Mark VI _Supremacy_-class star fighter, while also being armed with thirty-two B28 _Extinction_-class bombers, and thirty-five shuttles.

And should this massive compliment of fighters and bombers fail, the starship was armed to the teeth with four shield generators, heavily reinforced hull plating (four meters at the thickest) and featured a mix of turbo-laser batteries, quad laser cannons, ion cannons, proton torpedoes, and concussion missile launchers.

Put very simply?

The Maelstrom was a vessel of such sheer size and firepower, that it was only fitting that it would serve as Malgus's own personal starship. He had killed the Jedi battlemaster and succeeded his master. He deserved nothing less.

There was one drawback to such a vessel though. Despite the best efforts of the designers, walking to the bridge took an ungodly amount of time. An amount of time that made Malgus temporarily consider moving his quarters closer to the bridge. The thought was immediately shaken from his mind though, as there were far too many risks to that.

Add to that, the doors to the bridge slid open before the Sith, letting his heavy footsteps echo across the bridge. All crewman stopped their activity for a brief moment and turned their eyes to the massive pale faced Sith lord.

"My lord!" was the unanimous greeting they gave, followed by standing at attention.

Malgus gave a slight incline of the head, signaling them to return to their duties. They did just that, many working on maintaining the gargantuan vessel. Malgus himself walked up the small set of stairs leading to the massive viewport that showed the green grey world of Belkadan out the view port, its horizon barely visible. And irrelevant.

Malgus stopped next to the ship's Captain, Captain Tyrius. The Captain was by no means, a small man. In fact, he was quite a fit and slightly larger than average man. But when compared to his Sith superior, he might as well have been a child. Malgus stood head and shoulders higher than the man.

"My lord." he gave a bow.

Malgus narrowed his eyes as he looked out the viewport, letting out a small growl of annoyance, "My lord, is something wrong?" the captain asked.

"Captain." Malgus rasped, "Why have we not formed up with the rest of the Imperial fleet?"

Tyrius straightened up, "Well, Lord Malgus, Darth Vindican always preferred that all actions be delayed until he arrived onboard the bridge."

The Sith Lord's face twisted into a scowl, "I am not my master, Captain," he sneered, "Darth Vindican was a fool. From now on, any and all fleet orders are to be followed whether I am present or not. Am I understood?"

That got a paled look from the captain, something Malgus reveled in, "Completely sir."

"Good. Now I suggest we move into position before the Republic arrives." Malgus stated. He crossed his arms and stared out the viewport without looking at the Captain.

Tyrius gave a brisk salute, "By your command, my lord." and turned to his crew.

"You heard him. All engines forward, we need to get to those coordinates."

_Belkadan, Tingel Arm…_

The planet Belkadan was a fairly standard Outer Rim planet. Undeveloped, relatively clean, and very rural. However, there was one unique feature that made such a standard observation obsolete. And that was the massive Sith War Fleet in orbit around it.

There were roughly two hundred and thirty starships, ranging from destroyers to dreadnaughts, to the many smaller ally ships the Sith had managed to forge in the Outer Rim. They all formed a concave half circle in orbit where they believed their enemies would be arriving. With so many starships, arranged in vertical ranks two ships high, it formed a screen so thick, only the largest and most well armed fleet could hope to survive against such overwhelming odds.

However, intelligence on such large numbers was unknown to their enemies. The Sith had been quick, decisive, and ruthless to ensure only glimpses of their might made it back to the Republic at all. As far as the Republic knew, the Sith were nothing more than an upstart faction who could be put down with one well placed fleet.

So with this in mind, it would be no surprise to any Sith (or Jedi) that the fleet that did finally come out of lightspeed was far from top notch.

It was only a small complementary fleet, consisting of a single bulbous _Valor_-class cruiser, with an escort of a dozen _Thranta_-class corvettes, a dozen _Defender_-class light corvettes, and three _Hammerhead_-class cruisers. A powerful force against a fledgling star-faring race, but against the might of the Sith fleet, and their allies? It was nothing but cannon-fodder.

Thousands of turbolasers, concussion missiles, and quad laser cannons streamed across the blackness of space. The light corvette's that formed the front wedge of the fleet were the first to be impacted. Their shields flared as they were impacted, holding for the briefest of moments. And then they failed and collapsed, allowing the emerald streams of energy to collide with their hulls.

Durasteel boiled and warped under the impact, the superheated turbo-lasers scorching their hulls. Many of the thin half-meter hulls split and vented atmosphere and crew. Only half of the dozen corvette's even managed to send off a return volley before they too were impacted. Hulls splintered, atmosphere vented, and ships veered about, some colliding into each other.

Two starships slammed into each other with thunderous cracks. Their hulls interlocked and held for a moment, before splintering and shattering under the impact, spilling the vulnerable crew into the vastness of space. All of this, the death, the destruction…

That was the opening volley.

The light corvette's managed to buy the rest of the fleet time to at least react to the second volley. Green streaks of light met the concussion missiles head on, many of them detonating harmlessly in space. But it wasn't enough, not by half.

Many of the starships began to scatter, hoping to break the fire up. But the sheer numbers alone made such a gesture useless. The remaining _Thranta_-class corvettes shattered under the constant stream of fire, venting more atmosphere and crew into space.

A _Hammerhead _lost control of its engines, and veered wildly into the _Valor _cruiser, spearing the circular ship through the midsection. The long line of engines stretching out from the bottom of its hulls flickered once, and then died out. The starship groaned and all the lights along its hull went dead. The two starships drifted through the void as fire rained down on them.

And then their reactors went critical. Explosions rippled along their hulls, fire raging from the ragged holes, and then the two vanished in a ball of plasma, taking half a _Hammerhead _with them. The rest of the War Fleet drifted aimlessly through space, their fractured and shattered hulls nothing but dead pieces of steel.

In a matter of three point one minutes, the entire response fleet had been wiped out by the Sith battle fleet. Honestly, they'd never stood a chance against such firepower. A fact the Sith reveled in, many crews cheering in victory.

The crew aboard the Maelstrom cheered as well, Malgus letting them revel in their victory. Let them enjoy their victory. Malgus knew what no other Sith knew. The Republic wouldn't be so easy to defeat in later battles. Jedi Master Kao had shown that. The Republic and Jedi were weak, that was for sure.

But even a determined weakling could be dangerous.

So let them enjoy their victory. The coming months, the coming weeks… they would not be so easy. He knew that. It was a fact… they would not fall easily.

_Jedi Temple, Coruscant, Seven Months Since the Incident…_

Jack was easily knocked on his back, all the breath getting knocked out of him in one go, "Ow…" he squeaked.

"Your form was sloppy," Jack looked up to see the end of his masters training saber pointed at him. The training sabers were not lightsabers by _any _stretch of the imagination. They consisted of a hilt, a durasteel skin, and a glowing yellow lines that ran up its blade that Jack honestly had no idea what they were. Except that they could deflect light blaster shots, and hurt like hell!

"You need to tighten up and let the Force flow through you." Satele continued, "Otherwise this'll just keep happening, and happening, and happening."

Jack managed to look up from the saber at his master, "I'm glad you're so gentle about it, master." he deadpanned. Jack's lightsaber training had officially begun six months earlier. Shortly after finally connecting with the Force, Satele had spent two full weeks training him in meditations meant to help him better connect with and control the Force.

The result had been that Jack could now levitate objects, and had developed a sort of… sixth sense. Something that it seemed all Jedi had a sort of precognitive ability that allowed him to very briefly see what was to come. Oh, he wasn't great with it yet, but he had slowly begun to develop the ability.

And that was most apparent in his lightsaber training. Good god, Jack both loved and hated it. On one hand, using the training sabers felt almost natural to him, as if it were a natural part of him. Funny, since his initial few days of training lead to him getting zapped by a blaster droid… many, many times.

But as time passed, his natural skill began to show as he master the basic form, Shii-Cho incredibly fast. In two months time, he had the form pretty well memorized. Not perfect, but enough that he was able to branch off into a different style.

And the style Jack enjoyed the most, the one that felt most natural was Form VII, Juyo style. The most aggressive style, ironic given how level headed Jack was. He normally preferred well thought out plans and such. But Juyo style appealed to him in many ways. Jack had always wanted to be a bit more impulsive, able to think on his feet more.

Juyo style let him do just that, while retaining a level of grace. In other words, the style was organized chaos. And as a result, Jack may have _liked _the style, he still had a way to go before he mastered it. According to Satele, as long as he let his emotions into combat, it would always be this way.

A Jedi always went into battle calm and without emotion. Emotion made them rash, illogical, and both unpredictable and easily predictable. And for Jack, as he knew all too well, severing his emotional connection was… next to impossible. Hence why he liked Juyo. It was the closest style to letting him use his emotions instead of blocking them.

But not a perfect style.

Pretty obvious honestly, given that he had gotten his rear handed to him again. But Satele was years more experienced than him. So he didn't expect to match her in combat anytime soon. If he did, than his master wouldn't have anything left to teach him!

Satele offered a hand to him with a gentle smile. Jack took it and she hauled him to his feet, "Thanks…" he mumbled.

"You are improving," Satele admitted, "And with practice you'll get better."

Jack gave a nod, still catching his breath. He noticed a flicker of movement out of the corner of his eye, and looked to see Master Zym in their training room. Satele noticed Jack stiffening and looked over at what had caught his attention.

"Grand Master Zym." she stated, "To what do we owe the pleasure?"

The Grand Master spared a glance at Jack before looking at Satele, "May I speak to you in private Satele?"

The young woman raised a brow and holstered the training saber on her back, "Of course master," she gave a curt nod and looked back at her Padawan.

"Shii-Cho form. Practice all the movements." she ordered.

Jack suppressed a groan and picked his training saber off the ground, "Yes master," he grumbled.

With that, he took the form and began working through the positions and movements while Satele met with Master Zym outside the room, "Master Zym, I thought you were leaving to Sluis Van?" she asked.

"Sluis Van is nothing but fire and scrap metal now." Master Zym said, "The Sith launched another devastating attack. There were no survivors."

That caught Satele off guard. The Sluis sector was home to several key shipping yards for the Republic. Without it, the ability to rebuild starships would be severely crippled. But this was an excellent example of the war so far. The Sith had been plowing through the Outer Rim, leaving nothing but death and destruction in their wake.

The Senate was still slow to act, and the small resistance that kept cropping up was barely enough to slow the advance. Even with the Jedi assisting, it was only a matter of time before the Sith inevitably moved into the core worlds…

"What happens now, master?" Satele asked. Obviously he wouldn't have come with such news unless things were truly turning sour.

Zym let out a reserved sigh, "I am heading off world to convince colonies in the Outer Rim to remain with the Republic. But I came to talk with you about your Padawan."

Satele raised a brow, "Jack? What about him? He's moving along my training at a fast and steady rate."

Another sigh.

"The council believes that we may need to accelerate the training of Padawans to compensate for our losses. An emphasis on saber training in particular. The time for scholars is behind us for now. But they want to try this with Jackson first, due to the…uniqueness of his condition."

This brought no reaction from Satele other than her crossing her arms. Zym's serious tone grew even more serious.

"We agreed we wouldn't proceed with this action without consulting with you first. His skill in the saber, how is he progressing?" Zyn asked.

Satele let out her own hollow sigh, "He does well, Grand Master. He is determined and a fast learner. He is attempting to master Form VII."

"Juyo?"

"The very same."

Zym scratched his chin and furrowed his brow, "This is interesting news. Satele, do you think he could handle a true lightsaber in combat?

Satele narrowed her eyes ever so slightly, "I believe he wouldn't hurt himself. But he is not ready for the front lines. Far from it."

"I know Satele, the council knows," Zym quickly said, "However, Jack needs to get out of the temple. He needs more experiences as part of his training. If you agree with us, then Jack's training will be accelerated. If not, the subject will be dropped."

The young woman paused for a moment and thought about Zym's words. Jack was becoming a great swordsman, or at least had the makings of one. She couldn't deny that. And he needed to go out into the world, that was true too. He knew less of the galaxy than most Padawans his age did. And while this was due to his training…

"I think he can." Satele admitted.

Zym lowered his hand, "But!" she added, "If you do go through with this, I request we be transferred to Sarapin. The volcanic world will provide some social interaction for him, but keep him isolated from the war and allow me to finish his training. Or at least teach him how to defend himself in a fight."

Silence from Zym followed for a moment or two. Then the Grand Master gave a curt nod, "This will be more than satisfactory." he smiled behind his mask, "You are growing wise Satele. Perhaps it truly was a good idea putting him under your care."

Satele didn't let that comment get to her, "Thank you master. When do you want us to leave?"

"You leave in a month's time." Zym replied, "Tie up all loose ends you may have here. When you are done, transport will be made available to you."

Satele placed her hands together and bowed, "Thank you master."

Zym returned the bow, "Do be careful Satele. I do not like this anymore than you, but these enemies require dangerous decisions. I simply pray that when this war is over, that we are not left as damaged internally as externally."

"I agree master…" Satele murmured. He didn't hear her, and instead gave a quick goodbye and left, walking down the halls.

Satele gave a tired sigh and rested against the wall, rubbing her forehead with one hand, "This isn't right… It doesn't feel right." she whispered.

She just hoped that she was wrong for once. So very very wrong…

**A/N: Sorry for the short chapter guys, but I promise next chapter will be more awesome! Jack gets his lightsaber next chapter! Also, sorry for the time skip again, but they only get bigger from here on out. With that said though, I know this was a filler chapter, but did you enjoy it? Good, bad, meh? Let me know in the reviews, and feel free to leave ideas and suggestions. Also, any and all guests reviews asking for a NarutoxTFP crossover will be shot and fed to the Rancor. I mean it. Don't. Test. Me.**

**Anyway, bye!**


	12. Chapter 11

Chapter 11: Pathways

_Hyperspace…_

The never ending blue mosaic of Hyperspace dominated the cockpit of the Defender Light Corvette that traveled at a blistering pace. The small vessel was a deep red with white stripes running along its side with a hammerhead shaped bridge and two large engines at the rear. The main body was long and rectangular, making for a very unappealing ship design.

But for its two lone passengers, it more than sufficed. After all, function did often beat form.

Satele opened her eyes and let out the smallest of yawns. Having just inputted the correct coordinates, all that was left was to wait for the next few hours until they arrived at their location.

Ilum, an ice world and one of the most sacred planets for the Jedi. It was there that the crystals for their lightsabers grew and were harvested. She herself had been meaning to plan a trip there to replace the ligthsaber she'd lost on Korriban. But training Jack had taken priority and she'd only planned on coming when Jack did.

Like she was right now.

The young woman sighed and rubbed her eyes while thinking back to what had happened. The past month after receiving her orders from the council, Satele had increased Jack's lightsaber training against her better judgement. She wanted to focus on strengthening his connection to the Force first and teach him more Jedi philosophies before upping his training.

But time was of the essence, and in a month's time she felt better secured that her decision was the right one. Jack may have been no master, that was obvious, but he'd grown more confident as time passed. Something that was not lost on Satele. The teen had grown much in the past few months under her tutelage.

Thanks to the help of her former master and the Jedi Archives, Satele had slowly been able to change her Padawan for the better. Jack had grown taller and physically stronger over the past few months, with his coordination tripling with ease. No more did the boy trip over his own feet when he got excited, or whack himself with the training blades (Something Satele never stopped laughing at).

No, instead the teen had grown more coordinated with time. He could hold his own against her for a few minutes now, and even maintained his meditation for hours at a time. Truly he was starting to come into his own.

Satele closed her eyes and leaned forward, rubbing her face with her hands, "It's still too soon though…" she whispered to herself.

Jack may be developing nicely from her training, but Satele needed more time. More time to work out the methods she'd use to teach him, more time to teach Jack about being a Jedi, just more time. She didn't want to get him a lightsaber till he'd completed his first year. Something still months away.

But the Council had made their decision, and Satele reluctantly followed it. Mastery Zym would never force Jack to move faster than he should. The Grand Master was smarter than that and Jack was a capable young man.

Satele stood from the cockpit and walked out. Maybe she was just being too paranoid. It was difficult being a master to such a unique pupil. Jack did not have a decade of youngling training behind him to make simpler concepts available to him. Oh, he tried, but that didn't mean that she wasn't worried and concerned for him.

_'I only hope I am good enough…' _she thought as she walked into the main hall of the starship. It supported a holo-communicator and lead into Jack and her room, as well as the engine/ storage bay. Small but more than enough for the Jedi and her Padawan.

Speaking of, Jack was actually occupying the room at the moment, leaned over a nearby terminal and looking over a datapad. He sensed Satele entering the main hall and looked up to greet her.

"Master." he looked dead tired and more than a little nervous himself. Something else also was troubling the boy, Satele could tell, but she didn't press it. Privacy was something the two respected.

Jack tried his best to leave his master be when she was fulfilling her own studies, and she tried not to pry into his personal matters… too much. Being his master, Satele had a right to know what he did, but her masters had told her one thing when she became a knight. A master had to show they trusted their Padawan. If they did not, then how could their Padawan trust them?

With that said though, Satele felt like prying might be necessary this time. If something was distracting Jack, she wanted the issue resolved before they arrived at Ilum, if only so he could stay focused.

"Does something trouble you, Padawan?" she asked him.

A nervous expression crossed Jacks face before he looked at the data pad in his hands, "Sorry master, I was just looking through the date… It's similar to my home, and if I'm right I turned 17 today…"

His nervousness fading, Jack tightened his grip on his datapad, "I guess I'm just wondering how my family and friends are getting along without me. I've been gone so long now…"

Satele slowly took a seat in the second chair across from her Padawan. It was obvious to her now what troubled Jack. He was homesick, something she knew was bound to afflict him eventually.

So she tried to help get his mind off it, "So you believe today is the day of your birth?" she asked him.

Jack gave a slow nod, "How are you certain?"

"I…" Jack blinked and looked up, "I remembered the date I was sent here, and tried to match it up with the dates here. I'm not entirely sure how long accurate I am, but I know I'm at least a few days off at the worst."

A small smile crossed Satele's face, "Quite clever of you, Jack." she praised.

Jack's face turned a faint shade of red, "It was nothing. I was just doing what anyone would." he admitted modestly.

A brief silence followed that statement as Satele's praise faded from Jacks mind. It didn't take long for him to start falling back into his earlier depression. But at this point, even he didn't want to deal with it. His friends and family were safe back home and Jack knew there wasn't anything he could do to change his predicament.

So in an effort to change the subject, Jack looked at his master, "So this place, Ilum… where is it exactly?"

Satele was shaken from her thoughts and looked at Jack, "Ilum's location is not truly known to any being. All records of its location have been hidden. Only a Force sensitive can find it."

"But…" Jack thought for a moment, "If that's true, wouldn't that mean the Sith could find it too?"

His master gave a solemn nod, "They could, but I doubt they would. The war has only begun, and to forgo other key strategic systems for Ilum when there are other systems that provide us with crystals would be pointless. For now, we are safe."

With that, Satele stood from her chair, "I would recommend rest Padawan. When we arrive in Ilum you will face many hardships in acquiring your lightsaber crystal."

Jack stood up to and gave a short bow, "Thank you master." he told her, and then walked off to his room to meditate and calm himself.

Once he was gone, Satele looked over the datapad to see the dates listed on it. Her time with Jack, teaching him to read Galactic Standard and tutoring him had instilled her with a basic knowledge of English writing. So she was able to make out the dates and such. But after several moments of reading, she frowned.

"He did these calculations wrong." he was early by several days.

Briefly, Satele debated with telling the teen about his mistake but ultimately decided against it. He didn't need to know about that yet, not with Ilum fast approaching. The young woman set the data pad down and moved to her own room.

She sat on a meditation pad and took deep breaths as she entered a deep meditation.

_'Please…' _she pleaded as her mind fogged over, _'Let him be ready. Let my Padawan survive this…'_

_Ilum, One Day later…_

"I wish you'd mentioned this was an ice planet master…" Jack mumbled as he readjusted his arctic clothing.

He and Satele were both clad in thermal clothing with layers of furs wrapped around them, and hoods pulled over their heads. He'd have thought they'd have some sort of futuristic space suit to wear. But, except for the thermal under suit he wore under his clothing, Jack looked more like an Eskimo than a spaceman. Go figure.

An amused smile spread over Satele's face at the boys discomfort. They'd arrived at Ilum early that morning, and after a brief morning breakfast, had descended to the icy planet's surface. To Satele, luck had been on their side as the planet was not engulfed in another vicious blizzard. It was still freezing, but there were few clouds overhead, and the sun shined down on the frozen landscape.

Satele was relieved that at least one natural obstacle was removed from her Padawans path. But many more still awaited the duo she knew as they walked across the icy earth.

"I guess we can consider ourselves lucky that we packed appropriately then, wouldn't we Padawan?" she replied as they walked.

Jack stumbled in a bit of snow before quickly catching back up to her, "A fair warning would've been nice though."

"I did tell you to study, didn't I?" Satele replied. She came to a stop at a massive cliff side that towered over the duo. Her eyes scanned the frozen wall before her, looking for the tell tale signs of the temple. She'd landed the Defender on a solid outcropping of rock two kilometers away, remembering where the temple was from when she'd first come to Ilum what felt like a lifetime ago.

Jack rubbed the back of his head, "Ugh…right, of course Master."

Satele's blue eyes briefly flicked to her Padawan, "Jack…" she scolded almost playfully. Getting the boy to study on galactic history was the one subject he was poor in.

"Well, it was just such a dry read…" Jack admitted, "I mean, it's hard enough trying to translate this stuff as it is… and when it's boring, well…"

Satele shook her head before resuming her examination of the cliff face, "My young Padawan, you both astound me and amuse me."

"It's a gift?" Jack suggested, not sure if that was a compliment from his master or not.

The only response he got was Satele trudging onwards through the clean snow towards the cliff face, "Come." she ordered, "We're nearly there."

Jack nearly let out a sigh of relief, but held it in. He was better than that now, and besides like Satele said, they were nearly there. So he followed onwards.

After a minute or two of trudging through the knee high snow, the two found themselves at the bottom of a series of long stairways that lead several hundred feet up. Jack craned his head back and gulped.

"That's… a long way up…"

"It's not as bad as you'd think." Satele told him confidently.

Jack continued staring up the stairway, "If you insist, master." he mumbled.

Satele just smiled and lead the teen up the very long trek ahead of them. The stairs were carved into the very icy cliff side, their edges worn and uneven from millennia of Jedi making this very same climb. The cliff face itself that they walked next to seemed worn, crusted over with layers of ice.

Despite all this though, as Jack and his master made this climb, the teen felt…something. An ancient pull leading him up the stairs. It took the boy a few moments to figure out, and when he did, he stopped for a moment.

Satele looked back behind herself at him, "Jack?"

He shook himself, "Sorry Master, I was just… the Force is very strong here, isn't it?" he asked.

"Yes, it is." she looked up the lengthy path ahead of them, "This world was discovered by the ancient Jedi millennia ago, at the start of our order. It is one of our most sacred planets."

Jack was silent as he digested that information. Satele then smiled faintly and started back up the stairs, "Had you studied as I ordered, you'd know this."

"H-hey!" Jack started after her, "That's not fair master!"

"It's perfectly fair, Padawan." Satele chuckled as they turned and continued up the flight, "You did not study, and so now I have to educate you."

Jack came to a stop again, "Yeah, but… come on, it's history…"

"And is history not important Padawan? Is the sacrifice of our ancestors, their hardships and triumphs not worth remembering?" Satele asked without stopping or turning around.

That made Jack scratch his head with an embarrassed look on his face, "Never said that…"

Satele smiled triumphantly, though Jack didn't see it, "Then studying history is as important as learning to swing a lightsaber or move objects with the Force, Jack."

The teen sighed and continued following her, "Yes master." he mumbled.

From then on, the two walked up the mountainside in silence. As they continued walking though, Jack noticed the walls changing. Due to the height, Jack hadn't noticed but an entire temple was actually carved into the side of the cliff! Towering spires and walls were carved from the ice, glistening under the sunlight of Ilum's star. It was a breathtaking sight to say the least, one that almost made Jack freeze in his tracks.

Satele sighed and shook her head before grabbing him by the collar, "You need to learn to focus, my Padawan." she scolded while Jack yelped.

"Sorry, sorry." he apologized once he started after her again.

Jack spared a glance at the towering temple, "It's just…wow. I didn't expect this."

"Well what did you expect?" Satele asked. The two stopped at the temple entrance, a large U-shaped doorway at the front of the temple.

"I…" Jack paused and hung his head, "…have no idea."

That got a smile from Satele, who lead him into the temple. She frowned as they entered the massive building. Oh, it was astounding to look at for sure. Massive icy pillars held up the structure, and large catwalks stretched across the area from one side to another. Multiple cave entrances dotted the structure, some lined with large crystals. Far too large for a lightsaber, they simply acted as decorative entrances. No more no less.

But the reason that Satele was frowning was because it was empty. Normally there were at least two or three Jedi and their padawans occupying the temple. But the war had called most Jedi out, and for the moment the temple was abandoned. But given time, she knew that it would be flooded with new padawans. If Jack's training worked out that is…

Jack let out a low whistle, "Every time I think this universe has thrown everything it's got at me…"

Satele took in a deep shaky breath and looked at Jack, "This, my Padawan, is where we part."

"Whoa, wait, what?" Jack asked, confused by this sudden declaration, "What do you mean 'where we part'?"

His master looked from him at the temple, "Within these caves lies a crystal for your saber. It is up to you, and you alone to find this crystal. I cannot assist you in anyway."

"You're serious…?" he had a hard time believing that, but… Satele looked dead serious.

"Yes." she nodded solemnly, "Be careful Jack, and let the Force guide you. In your time of need, it will be your closest ally."

Jack gave a short bow at that, "…Thank you, master…" he said, a nervous undertone permeating his voice.

Satele put a hand on his shoulder when he straightened up, "I will await you here my Padawan. May the Force be with you."

Jack nodded reluctantly and started up one of the paths. It was the nearest one and lead up to a cave lined with large crystals. Again, too large for him to use, but he had a feeling the crystal he was looking for resided in there.

As he walked, Satele never stopped watching him, that feeling of apprehension never leaving. She kept arguing with herself that he wasn't ready, that he needed more time. That if she let him do this, he could die in there.

_'No…' _she thought to herself, _'If he's not ready now, he never will be…' _

She watched him disappear into the cave from her sight. With a bow of her head, Satele murmured silently to herself, "Be safe…"

_Jack…_

The young Padawan slowly made his way through the tunnel, its halls barely lit by the large crystals that inhabited it. Again, too many of them were too large for him to use in a lightsaber. Something he'd become educated in over the past month.

Since Satele had focused his training, the teen had learned more about lightsabers and their assembly. And one thing he learned was that as part of the method of gaining a lightsaber, he had to find a natural crystal that would fit within the materials he had gathered for his own blade.

As another part of his accelerated training, Jack had spent the last month gathering all the supplies he would need to construct his own lightsaber. Either finding them or constructing them himself (For once his mechanical know how paid off) the teen knew that a crystal too large or small wouldn't fit in his single bladed lightsaber.

Others used two blades when crafting their saber(s) or crafted a saber-staff. And while that may have fit his masters preferred fighting style, it didn't fit with Jacks. He found that a single blade fit him best. It's why he had only a single vibroblade strapped to his back, instead of two or an electrostaff.

A single blade fit his variation of Juyo best, "Let's hope that stays the same when I find my crystal." Jack muttered as he clambered over a pile of rocks.

He hopped down and examined the path before him. The tunnel split off into three directions, one left, one straight forward, and one right. Technically the fourth went the way he came, but Jack didn't count it. Instead he stopped and looked at the three with crossed arms.

"Well that's great." he sighed and closed his eyes connecting to the Force for a moment. Ever since he'd finally made the connection, Jack found it easier to let the Force guide him than ever before. It was like a tingling sensation that would… pull him in the right direction, or told him if a certain idea or movement was wrong.

_'Heh, kinda like a spider sense.' _he thought with a smile, before opening his eyes and looking at the path to his right.

"Nothing ventured, nothing gained I guess." he mumbled and started down the hall. As he did, he pulled his vibr blade out. He had a feeling he'd need it.

The blades durasteel edge flashed in the dim light, briefly catching his eye. He ignored it as he cautiously walked over the uneven ground, making sure to test his footing with each step. For several minutes he continued this cautious walk through the caves, until he felt something.

It was similar to the presence he'd felt on the trek up to the temple. A feeling of the Force nearby. Of course all the crystals exhibited this, but this felt as though it were calling to him specifically, not just to everything around it. His crystal was close.

"Alright, where are you…" he murmured.

Jack continued forward, but paused when he heard something. The sound of… teeth on bone, like a dog gnawing on its favorite treat. Jack stopped and listened to find it was fairly close by now. He gulped nervously before closing his eyes.

"There is no emotion, there is peace. There is no ignorance, there is knowledge. There is no passion, there is serenity. There is no chaos, there is harmony. There is no death, there is the Force." he repeated the code several times to help calm his nerves. Luckily, the mantra worked and he felt his fear fade to a peaceful calm.

His nerves steadied, Jack surged ahead. He went forward a few more feet before stopping as he entered a large cave. It was hard to make out the details of the cave except that it was big. Few crystals illuminated the cave and it seemed the Jedi either chose not to illuminate it or something had removed the lighting.

The sound of whatever was gnawing on that bone told Jack otherwise. Still, he pressed on as his eyes adjusted to the darkness. A decision he immediately regretted a moment later. Why?

Well because he found the source of the gnawing noise.

A massive cat like creature rested at the edge of a bowl, gnawing on a bone. It was large with greenish blue skin with white fur coating its backside. It's head was shaped like that of a hammerheads with large tendrils jutting from its back and two tusks from it's the front of it's hammerhead. A long pointed tail swayed back and forth behind the panther.

Jack froze and the panther looked up from the bone it was gnawing on at him. It's steely blue eyes glowed in the dim light, focusing on Jack, never wavering. The teen gulped as it released its bone and looked directly at him.

"Nice kitty…?" he said suggestively.

The creature didn't move at first, allowing Jack to see past it. A faint glow emanated from the pit and Jack realized that the crystal he was looking for was _being guarded _by the giant cat creature. Fantastic.

"Talk about a hell of a trial…" Jack muttered.

The panther suddenly snarled, making Jack jump. It got to its four toed paws and hunched down, glaring at him with those steel blue eyes. Jack held his vibroblade at the ready, but was doubting his chances.

Muscle bunched along the creatures back, tensing up like a spring. It then sprang forward at him, claws extended. Jack yelped and rolled out of the way, feeling its claws snatch his arctic wear and tearing his shirt off, leaving only his thermal undersuit from the waist up.

"Scrap." he cursed as the creature circled around to try and take another bit out of Jack.

It lunged forward again, but this time Jack jumped backwards. Months of training took over, and the teen flipped backwards away from the alien panther. He slashed at its face as he did, and was rewarded with a snarl of pain from the cat.

When he landed, Jack saw a slash across the creatures left eye, blinding it in that area. A new blind spot. Jack immediately jumped to his left so that it'd lose him for the moment. The panther snarled and began sniffing the air for him as he disappeared from view. A moment later, its head jerked towards him.

Jack yelped and danced back, barely dodging a swipe from its massive paw. The creature snarled angrily and tensed again.

"Oh no you don't…" Jack growled under his breath.

He felt a buildup of the Force inside him, and like a valve, released it with a thrust of his hands. The panther was sent flying across the area and crashed in the pit with a pained yowl. Jack stood there, panting for a moment. He took the lull in the fight to catch his breath, before approaching the edge of the pit.

The large panther was laying on its side in front of his goal, a small batch of glowing crystals at the far end of the pit. Jack tightened his grip on his vibroblade and jumped down, sliding down the slope. Upon reaching the bottom, he slowly approached the beast.

It lifted its large head up to look at him with its one good eye, but did not move. This was due to the spike jutting through its midsection, and the small pool of blood forming beneath it. Jack readied his vibroblade for another strike to put it out of its misery, when he something caught his attention. A tiny mewling sound from over by the crystal. He and the panther both looked over to see the noise.

Jack went wide eyed as a smaller version of the cat he'd been fighting cautiously padded out from behind the crystal. It looked at the larger panther Jack had been fighting, and let out a tiny terrified mewl. Not out of fear of the cat itself, but it almost sounded concerned.

The kitten, at least that's how Jack saw it, bounded over to the panther and nuzzled against it, a gesture the creature returned. Realization hit Jack like a ton of bricks.

"Your… a mother, this is a nest…" the teen fell to his knees as he looked over the panther again. There was no way it would survive with an injury like that, and it was likely the kitten would be left alone and probably die in there…

Jack looked at the panther, which licked its offspring before looking at him with its one eye, "I'm so sorry…" he whispered, not sure if the panther understood his sorrow or not.

The Force was with Jack that day though, as the large panther looked at its offspring and nudged it at Jack. The little kitten mewed and looked at its mother. She gestured her head at Jack, telling the little panther to go to him.

Jack closed his eyes and felt the mother's life slowly fading to join the Force. The kitten let out a tiny mew as its mother rested her head on the ground and her eye began to close. She let out the closest thing to a comforting purr she could and nudged her kitten at Jack one last time.

Reluctantly, the kitten padded over to Jack, who opened his eyes in surprsise. Understanding dawned on the boys face and he nodded at the panther, "I understand." he told her.

As if this was what the big cat was waiting for, its body went relaxed and it let out a single breath. It did not move again. The kitten rushed back to its mothers body and put a paw on her head, letting out a wail of sadness. Jack got up from his kneeling position and cautiously approached the kitten.

He placed a hand on its head and let the Force flow through him into it. He tried to make it understand why he had done what he'd done and tried to tell it that he would take care of it now. That he would atone for what he'd done, no matter how long it took.

Not all of that made it through to the kitten due to Jacks inexperience, but enough did. It slowly backed away from its mother and looked to him with big pleading eyes. Jack knelt down and patted it on the head. The creature was about two or three feet long, barely coming up to Jacks shin at the moment.

"I'm sorry for what I did." he whispered, "But I promise I'll take care of you. You won't be alone."

The kitten mewed quietly and nuzzled his hand. Jack carefully scratched behind its fins along its skull, making the cat let out a sad purr. Once that was done, Jack reluctantly stood and looked over at the crystals.

"All this for a stupid rock." he sighed and approached the batch. In one fluid motion, he broke off a crystal the size he needed and put it in the remains of his belt. His task complete, Jack picked the kitten up and carried it out of the cave, leaving its mother behind. He couldn't really burry here with nothing but rock around, but he stopped and placed a hand on her head, muttering one last apology.

And then he returned to the main temple chamber.

When he did, Satele looked up from her meditation and froze, "Jack… Where did you get an Ashari Panther?" she asked.

Jack sighed and set the kitten down (It immediately settled next to his feet) and explained how he found his crystal and what happened when he did. Once he finished, Satele looked from him to the kitten and back to him.

"Jack…"

He hung his head, "I made a horrible mistake master, and all for this stupid rock!" he grabbed the crystal in his hand and briefly considered throwing it away. The cost wasn't worth it, not if he murdered a mother for it.

Satele gently grabbed his hand and shook her head no. The kitten looked up at her with a mew, "Each Jedi's search for their crystal teaches them a valuable lesson Jack. Mine taught me to look where others may miss details. Yours has taught you not to judge purely by appearances, and not to rush blindly into a situation without all the facts. Keep the crystal as a reminder of that lesson Padawan."

She stepped away and gestured to the center of the chamber, her message clear. Jack looked at the kitten at his feet and then to the crystal in his hand. Slowly, his hand tightened over the crystal and he gave a solid nod.

"Watch him for me?" he asked his master.

Satele nodded and kneeled next to the panther, "How'd you know it's a boy?" she asked as Jack walked to the center of the room.

"I could sense it." he replied quietly, and then kneeled in the center, spreading his equipment before him, the crystal dead center in the middle.

With his saber ready, Jack closed his eyes and bowed his head to let the Force flow through him. In this position he stayed for a long time, though he never found out how long. All he knew was that as the Force flowed through him, the parts began to slowly shift and move.

At first it was just small twitches and the occasional wobble. But then, they slowly began lifting off the ground, floating in front of Jacks face. There they began adjusting themselves into the right position. They began floating together, parts clicking and spinning into place.

The crystal was at the center of it all, the rest of the assembly forming around it. Slowly but surely the hilt came into being, a loose representation of what was to come. It all gradually clicked or slid together, and held tight under the influence of the Force.

Jacks eyes suddenly shot open. It was done, he knew it had to be. He held out an open hand, and the hilt floated over into it. Satele watched from a distance with a small smile on her face as it occurred.

His hand tightened on the hilt and he stood up, holding the hilt to the side. Jack flicked it on, and a beam of golden plasma erupted from the hilt. And like the millions of Jedi before him, he raised it overhead, feeling the Force flow through him in a moment of clarity, the blades shimmering golden edge flashing briefly.

A smile crossed Satele's face as she watched this, "Happy birthday Jack." she whispered.

**A/N: I AM SO SORRY! This chapter was the bane of my existence to write for reasons to many to list. Anyway, what did you guys think huh? Quite a few interesting moments, and I apologize if I screwed up any Star Wars lore (Though it's all technically non-canon now, thank you Disney). Moving on, I want to let you guys know that this story is going on official hiatus.**

**Why? **

**Because I am finally finishing Dark of the Night. You know, my vampire/TFP story? Yeah, I'm going to update it tomorrow sometime and FINALLY finish that sucker. So look out for that. In the meantime though ,review and let me know if you guys liked the chapter. Remember, if you don't review, I don't post new chapters!**

**Bye!**


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